NASA scientists have identified a small branching rock formation on Mars that resembles terrestrial coral, adding to evidence the planet once hosted liquid water. The 2.5-centimeter structure was photographed on 24 July by the Curiosity rover’s Remote Micro-Imager as the vehicle continued its survey of Gale Crater. Researchers say the feature is not a fossil but a mineral deposit created billions of years ago when groundwater percolated through cracks in bedrock and later eroded, leaving behind harder, vein-filled material. Similar findings by Curiosity, including carbon-bearing compounds and fluvial sediments, have progressively strengthened the case that early Mars provided conditions that could have supported microbial life. Curiosity has traversed Gale Crater since 2012, drilling samples and relaying high-resolution images to help reconstruct Mars’s climatic history. The latest discovery will guide upcoming analyses of rock chemistry as NASA refines its search for biosignatures ahead of future sample-return missions.