Rose-colored meteorite found in the Sahara Desert turns out to be 4.1 billion-year-old piece of Mars

A rose-colored meteorite found in the Sahara Desert in 2022 has been identified as a 4.1-billion-year-old chunk of the Red Planet, a NASA study determined. The nearly two-pound meteorite was found in Mali. It was named Teghaza 001, after the salt plain where it was discovered, NASA said in a news release. Study of the meteorite allowed NASA scientists to determine it was one of roughly 435 from Mars. Meteorites can be verified as having been part of Mars by comparing their chemical and mineral makeup to samples and data collected by NASA's Martian missions. Age-dating of the meteorite led researchers to conclude it was about 4.1 billion years old, making it one of the three most ancient Martian meteorites found on Earth, NASA said. That provides "a rare snapshot" of the planet's crust and formation, the agency said.