Nasa has discovered “diverse organic matter” on the surface of Mars, which could change our understanding of the red planet and the search for life in the universe. The Perseverance rover made the discovery in the Jezero Crater on Mars and a number of different explanations for the existence of the material have been posited. The materials could have been formed when water and dust interacted, or was dropped onto the planet by dust or meteors. Authors of the new study also refused to rule out that the materials are “biotic”, or came about due to the existence of life on the surface. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter The findings could have a big impact on the continued search for alien life, with research into the organic matter on the surface telling us more about the existence of carbon sources on Mars. The Jezero crater has been explored by The Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals (Sherloc) instrument on the rover since February 2021. The crater is the site of an ancient lake basin and all 10 target sites explored within it came back with signs of organic molecules. Even if the materials are not biological in origin, research into them could be crucial in the search for alien life, according to the researchers. “Not all organics are biological in origin. Observing spatial relationships between minerals and organics is necessary when evaluating organic origins and potential biosignatures. Everything we know of life on Earth is limited to what is preserved in the rock-mineral record. On Earth, biosignatures are found in certain minerals and some minerals are better at preserving organics than others,” said Ashley E Murphy, a researcher at the Planetary Science Institute and co-author on the new paper. “Mars may have had a similar early geologic history to Earth so we use our knowledge of life as we know it on Earth for where to look for potential evidence of past life on Mars. Mapping organics allows for a better understanding of if the Martian carbon cycle is similar to or different from Earth, and the potential of Mars to host life.” Writing in the Nature journal, the authors said: “Our findings suggest there may be a diversity of aromatic molecules prevalent on the Martian surface, and these materials persist despite exposure to surface conditions. “These potential organic molecules are largely found within minerals linked to aqueous processes, indicating that these processes may have had a key role in organic synthesis, transport or preservation.” The findings are published in a new article, ‘Diverse organic-mineral associations in Jezero crater, Mars’, in Nature. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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Marina Diamandis, known under her stage name Marina and the Diamonds, has revealed that she was recently diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. The condition, also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), resulted in symptoms such as “deep fatigue, numbness, tingling, low appetite, brain fog, rashes, insomnia and a feeling of being ‘poisoned’ for so long”, the 37-year-old Welsh singer wrote in an Instagram update. Diamandis shared that she was only diagnosed with ME after “seven years of health issues”, adding that “it’s been hard to remember what healthy feels like”. “My baseline energy has been at 50 to 60 per cent for a long time,” she continued in her post. “Aside from a few periods of remission, the last seven years have consisted of relying on adrenaline and willpower to push me through each day. “Recovery started two months ago after an unusually bad flare-up that involved shooting pains and burning sensations all over my hands, legs and back,” Diamandis revealed. “After seeing countless doctors, I started working with a functional medicine practitioner to find the root cause of the symptoms.” Functional medicine is a form of alternative medicine that focuses on identifying and treating the root cause of a disease. It falls outside of mainstream healthcare and is not offered by the NHS – although the NHS has recommended the use of some alternative medicines like acupressure and manual therapy for a limited number of circumstances. In her post, Diamandis claimed that her symptoms “are a result of a hypersensitive nervous system” that developed in response to “chronic stress”. “My body has felt stuck in ‘fight or flight’ mode and there were many warning signs it gave me before the worst symptoms set in,” she wrote. Amid her treatment, which she claimed helps to “retrain the nervous system to regulate itself again”, the “Primadonna” singer added that she is “feeling better today than I have in a long time”. “My energy levels are around 65 to 70 per cent most days and the dips I have are shorter,” she said. “Healing is demanding a lot of my energy and attention right now, but the better I feel, the sooner I can get back to my creative life again. I worked yesterday for the first time in a while yesterday and it felt so good.” Diamandis also said that living with ME has given her a “deeper empathy for the millions of people who live silently with chronic illness”. “It’s hard to maintain optimism when the world feels like it’s moving on without you, but hope always exists. Answers always exist,” she said. “The body wants to heal – and what I’ve learned is that you have to work with it, not against it.” ME is a long-term condition with a wide range of symptoms, but the most common one is extreme tiredness. It can affect anyone, including children, but tends to develop between a person’s mid-twenties and mid-forties. An estimated 250,000 people in the UK suffer from ME, with around 17 million sufferers around the world. It is more common in women. According to the NHS, there is no cure for ME. Treatments that may help sufferers manage the condition include cognitive behavioural therapy, energy management and medicine to control symptoms such as pain and sleeping problems. Diamandis released her most recent studio album Ancient Dreams in a Modern Land in June 2021. She embarked on a world tour last year to promote the record. Read More I keep forgetting my dog’s birthday – could a luxury pet party make it up to him? From Princess Beatrice to Louis Theroux: Who is in the Royal Box on the 12th day of Wimbledon? Woman requires eye surgery after using social media hack to remove makeup Should I keep my windows closed or open during a heatwave? How to sleep during hot weather, according to experts Father reveals moment he realised he wanted to leave US and raise children in Spain

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Scientists have been studying a “space ghost” which could be due to explode in just a few decades, changing the night sky forever – if it hasn’t already, that is. The object in question is a large star called Betelgeuse and the scientific community is divided over whether or not it’s already become a supernova. One theory states that the light from Betelgeuse takes so long to reach Earth it could mean the huge explosion has already taken place. Betelgeuse has been a supergiant red star for an estimated 40,000 years, but that could change relatively soon. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Michael Shara is the curator of astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History. He told the US Sun: "Betelgeuse lies somewhere between about 450 and 550 light years from Earth." He went on to say: "Betelgeuse’s position appears to change slightly, as seen from Earth, between June and December, when the Earth is on opposite sides of its orbit around the Sun. "That tiny change in position is a direct measure of the distance to Betelgeuse." He went on to expand on the theory by saying: "Let's assume that Betelgeuse is precisely 500 light years distant. "If Betelgeuse exploded as a supernova anytime in the past 499 years, the light from that event has not yet had enough time to reach Earth…so we have no way of knowing if Betelgeuse has already blown up. "If, for example, Betelgeuse blew up in 1600 AD, we won’t know about it until the year 2100. But if it blew up on August 1, 1523, then on August 1, 2023 it will become about as bright as the full Moon. "The only naked eye supernova of the past century occurred in 1987… all astronomers would be thrilled and delighted if Betelgeuse (or another dying star) graced our night sky with a supernova in the coming decades." Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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Marina has been diagnosed with a chronic illness that has left her energy levels dilapidated for years.

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Doctors have performed a minor miracle after re-attaching a “'decapitated” boy’s head after he was hit by a car. The miraculous surgery occurred after Suleiman Hassan, a Palestinian boy from the West Bank, was severely injured after being hit by a car while out riding his bike. He was airlifted to Hadassah Ein Kerem’s Trauma Unit in Jerusalem and went straight to surgery. He suffered what is known as an internal decapitation – this occurs when the base of the skull and top of the spine become detached by the skin remains intact. This extremely rare injury can occur when a strong, sudden impact on the head results in the muscles and ligaments that hold the head in place to sever, accounting for less than one per cent of spinal injuries. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Doctors explained that Hassan’s head was “'almost completely detached from the base of his neck” before he underwent painstaking surgery taking several hours. The procedure involves reattaching the skull and spinal column using technology such as screws, rods, plates and bone grafts. One of the surgeons who operated on Hassan, Dr Ohad Einav, told The Times of Isreal: “We fought for the boy’s life.” Dr Einav continued: “The procedure itself is very complicated and took several hours. While in the operating room, we used new plates and fixations in the damaged area… “Our ability to save the child was thanks to our knowledge and the most innovative technology in the operating room.” Surgeries such as the one that saved Hassan’s life are only possible if internal decapitation victims have their major blood vessels intact, keeping the brain alive. Hassan’s surgery took place in June but has only recently been made public as the boy continues to recover at home with rehabilitation. Miraculously, Hassan can walk unaided and has no neurological problems following the shocking injury. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.