Explore the history of life on Earth, from 3.5-billion-year-old fossils to the vast diversity of species on our planet today.

In his laboratory at the University of Poitiers in France, Abderrazak El Albani contemplates the rock glittering in his hands. To the untrained eye, the specimen resembles a piece of golden tortellini ...

Ancient rocks in Quebec, dating back 3.77 billion years, may hold the oldest evidence of life. Microscopic tube-like ...

Perseverance poses for a selfie with Cheyava Falls, a leopard-spotted rock it discovered in 2024 on Mars that could hold evidence of ancient microbial life. Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / MSSS A Mars ...

In Jezero Crater’s Bright Angel formation, Perseverance has found rocks rich in organic molecules and minerals linked to microbial metabolism. Their arrangement hints at redox reactions that resemble ...

A fossil site in Australia shows iron can preserve soft tissues, changing how scientists search for ancient ecosystems.

In a Mars-like region on Earth, hidden ecosystems persist despite extreme conditions. In Beacon Valley, one of the most Mars-like regions on Earth, Ariel Waldman reveals hidden ecosystems that persist ...