NASA's Perseverance Mars rover successfully collected its first pair of rock samples, and scientists already are gaining new insights into the region.After collecting its first sample, named "Montdenier" on September 6, the team collected a second, "Montagnac," from the same rock on September 8, according to a release by NASA.Analysis of the rocks from which the Montdenier and Montagnac samples were taken and from the rover's previous sampling attempt may help the science team piece together the timeline of the area's past, which was marked by volcanic activity and periods of persistent water."It looks like our first rocks reveal a potentially habitable sustained environment," said Ken Farley of Caltech, project scientist for the mission, which is led by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California."It's a big deal that the water was there a long time."The rock that provided the mission's first core samples is basaltic in composition and may be the product of lava ...
