Courtesy Euibin Kim, David Paige, UCLA

The Mars Perseverance rover has used ground-penetrating radar to confirm the hypothesis that Jezero crater, its landing site, likely contained a lake billions of years ago.

The rover’s radar detected sediments deposited at the bottom of the lake and in the delta formed where a river entered the lake have been detected. This finding also supports the hypothesis that Jezero crater may preserve signs of ancient life, if it ever existed on Mars, as these locations on Earth tend to be hot-spots for life. The radar images also reveal periods of erosion and deposition over time that help scientists better understand the geological history and environmental changes on Mars

Perseverance is collecting rock and soil samples to bring back to Earth for detailed analysis using powerful laboratory equipment to search for potential biosignatures.

More info can be found in this article by UCLA.