NASA's Curiosity Rover Spots Weird Twisted Rock Towers on Mars

NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover has spotted strange rock formations on the red planet that appear to have formed into small, twisted towers.

A photo of the rock formations was shared on Twitter last month by the SETI Institute, an organization dedicated to searching for alien intelligence. The picture, taken on May 15, was captured by one of the rover's cameras and transmitted to Earth.

At first glance the strange vertical formations appear to be almost organic, looking as though they are made of wood. The fact that the photo was shared by the SETI Institute may also have piqued the interest of some observers.

However, any organic or alien origins were quickly dismissed by the SETI Institute's tweet.

"Here is another cool rock at Gale crater on Mars," the organization said. "The spikes are most likely the cemented fillings of ancient fractures in a sedimentary rock. The rest of the rock was made of softer material and was eroded away."

A raw black-and-white image is available on NASA's website here.

Erosion is a well-documented phenomenon in which solid surfaces are worn down by natural processes. Here on Earth, erosion can be caused by a number of processes, such as rain, flowing water, ice, and wind. Mars lacks flowing water, but it has plenty of wind.

Scientists have previously documented how eroding winds on the red planet have created natural formations such as valley systems due to poorly cemented surface material being easily blown away.

Erosion can also create smaller, more intricate structures. Earlier this year, NASA shared a photo of another peculiar rock formation that looked like a flower.

The rock formation, also pictured by Curiosity and published on March 9, is smaller than a penny and has several appendages protruding outwards.

"Although it would be a major discovery if the rock was truly a fossilized ancient Martian flower, there are less spectacular—and currently preferred—explanations for its unusual structure," the space agency said in an online post.

It's thought the flower structure was created when minerals were deposited into existing rock by water leaking into cracks at some point in the past. This formed a hard structure that remains even if the outer rock is eroded away.

Photos taken on the surface of Mars by robotic rovers often tend to capture public interest, particularly when cool rock formations are involved. Earlier this year a rocky "doorway" on the Martian surface made headlines, and other reports focussed on what was interpreted as an "alien figure" lying down on a rock in the background of a Perseverance photo.