We took two steps forward in the search for life on Mars! Our Curiosity Mars rover detected “tough” organic molecules in 3-billion-year-old sedimentary rocks near the surface of Mars AND found seasonal variations in methane levels in the atmosphere. These two discoveries increase the chances that the record of habitability and potential life has been preserved on the Red Planet and are a good sign for future missions exploring the planet’s surface and subsurface. Seen here is a view from the "Kimberley" formation on Mars taken by the Curiosity rover. The colors are adjusted so that rocks look approximately as they would if they were on Earth, to help geologists interpret the rocks. This "white balancing" to adjust for the lighting on Mars overly compensates for the absence of blue on Mars, making the sky appear light blue and sometimes giving dark, black rocks a blue cast. Taken by the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on Curiosity, this view is from the 580th Martian day, or sol, of the mission...