NASA Found a Strange ‘Skull’ on Mars That May Have ‘Originated From Elsewhere’

Even on a planet filled with strange geology, this one stands out. On April 11, NASA’s Perseverance rover spotted a dark, craggy formation jutting out from the otherwise pale terrain of Jezero Crater. It looked ominous enough to earn the nickname “Skull Hill”—and weird enough to stump the scientists.

Perseverance had been inching its way down Witch Hazel Hill, a slope on the crater’s rim once flanked by a massive ancient lake. The region, known as Port Anson, is littered with what NASA calls “floats”—geological drifters likely carried by rivers, floods, or other chaotic forces billions of years ago. Skull Hill fits the bill: it’s out of place, out of character, and full of questions.

Its surface is pitted and scarred, like it’s been through something. Researchers suspect Martian wind, loaded with fine dust, may have blasted away softer bits of the rock over eons. Or maybe the holes formed from within, as fragile chunks eroded and fell out over time.

Its eerie color—almost charcoal black—got scientists thinking meteorite. But SuperCam readings quickly shut that down. The chemical signature didn’t match anything interplanetary.

That left a more down-to-Mars theory: Skull Hill might be volcanic. Minerals like pyroxene and olivine tend to darken igneous rocks, and the Martian surface has no shortage of volcanic scars. This chunk could have been flung from a nearby crater or left behind by an eruption that carved part of the landscape.

“Crater rims—you gotta love ’em,” Katie Morgan, Perseverance’s project scientist at JPL, said in a statement. “The last four months have been a whirlwind, and we still feel that Witch Hazel Hill has more to tell us.”

It’s been a busy stretch for the rover. Since December, Perseverance has collected five new samples, analyzed seven more in detail, and fired its laser at over 80 targets. That’s the fastest pace of scientific work since it landed in 2021.

But the real prize—getting those rocks back to Earth—is still up in the air. NASA’s Mars Sample Return mission has hit delays and budget issues. Until then, the best scientists can do is look, measure, and guess.

Skull Hill may be a volcanic loner, a battered survivor of Mars’ wetter days, or something stranger. Whatever it is, it’s another reminder that the Red Planet isn’t done surprising us.