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火星探测总能带来意外惊喜。NASA 毅力号火星车搭载的 SuperCam 仪器，原本设计用于通过激光诱导击穿光谱和拉曼光谱分析岩石成分，却在一次例行观测中“顺手”完成了一项意想不到的发现——火星表面存在含铬刚玉矿物，其发光特征与地球上的红宝石如出一辙。相关成果由 Ann Ollila 领衔的团队发表于《地球物理研究快报》，为理解火星远古地质历史提供了全新线索。
一次“副业”带来的意外发现
毅力号携带了一套强大的岩石分析装备：PIXL 和 SuperCam 可以探测各类元素，SHERLOC、SuperCam 和 PIXL 则通过 X 射线荧光、拉曼光谱和红外光谱等多种手段识别矿物。SuperCam 执行拉曼光谱测量时存在一个“副产物”——时间分辨发光测量能力。发光现象通常覆盖较宽的波长范围，地球上大部分商业照明都依赖这一原理，因此当 SuperCam 团队两年前在一块浅色岩石上探测到两个异常尖锐、狭窄的发光峰时，整个团队都感到意外。
这两个发光峰分别位于 692.7 纳米和 694.1 纳米波长处。SuperCam 能够精确测量光子到达的时间延迟，据此团队确认这种发光源自刚玉矿物结构中铬原子的延迟原子跃迁——这正是红宝石的发光机制。含铬刚玉的宝石级形态就是红宝石。SuperCam 首席研究员、普渡大学的 Roger Wiens 回忆，在仪器安装到毅力号之前，团队曾将一颗红宝石置于激光束中，整个房间都被明亮的红光点亮，亮度极其可观。
【关键数据】
- 发光峰值波长: 692.7 nm 和 694.1 nm（铬刚玉特征发光峰，红宝石同款机制）
- 发现时间: 约 2024 年首次探测到异常发光信号
- 成果发表: Ann Ollila 团队论文刊于《地球物理研究快报》
- 最新观测岩石: 浅色漂浮岩石“Nhlanguleni”，摄于 2026 年 10 月 29 日（Sol 2023）
- 观测区域: 耶泽罗陨石坑边缘附近的 South Idubi 地区
没有板块构造的火星，为何会有刚玉？
这一发现的科学价值远超“火星上有宝石”的猎奇话题。刚玉是一种变质矿物和伟晶岩矿物，通常形成于板块构造活动驱动的变质作用环境中，而火星缺乏板块构造，按常理不应存在这类矿物。研究团队给出的解释是：大型陨石和小行星撞击产生的长期加热可以在局部区域形成变质作用，从而催生刚玉。毅力号目前所在的耶泽罗陨石坑边缘属于非常古老的地层，恰好是寻找局部撞击变质证据的理想场所。
作为首个在此类古老坑缘地形执行任务的探测器，毅力号正在持续刷新认知。任务早期，团队只是偶尔尝试时间分辨发光观测；近来则频繁对浅色岩石开展此类测量，以寻找更多撞击变质作用的证据。2026 年 10 月 29 日，SHERLOC 的 WATSON 相机在 Kapama Karula 地点拍摄的岩石 Nhlanguleni，正是这类持续观测的最新成果之一。
小晶体撬动的大问题
虽然科学家尚未在火星上找到可采集的宝石级红宝石，但这些微小的刚玉晶体正在帮助人类还原火星的远古历史。撞击变质记录直接关联着早期太阳系轰击事件的规模与频率，也间接约束了火星古老地层的形成年代与热演化路径。在火星采样返回任务推进过程中，这类原位光谱发现将为地球实验室中的样品分析提供关键的对照参照。一个为化学分析设计的仪器，意外成为探测火星撞击历史的独特工具——这种能力的“跨界复用”，恰恰体现了行星探测任务中仪器设计与科学目标之间的灵活互动，也为后续深空探测任务的载荷规划提供了有益参考。
出处：Rubies on Mars?
英文原文Explore This Section Perseverance Home Mission Overview Rover Components Mars Rock Samples Where is Perseverance? Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Mission Updates Science Overview Objectives Instruments Highlights Exploration Goals News and Features Multimedia Perseverance Raw Images Images Videos Audio More Resources Mars Missions Mars Perseverance Rover Mars Curiosity Rover Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mars Odyssey More Mars Missions Mars Home This heavily pitted, light-toned float rock “Nhlanguleni” was imaged by SHERLOC’s WATSON camera on Sol 2023, October 29, 2026, at “Kapama Karula” in the “South Idubi” region. NASA/JPL-Caltech Written by Roger C. Wiens, SuperCam Principal Investigator for NASA’s Perseverance rover at Purdue University Nov. 4, 2026 Exploration on Mars turns up the unexpected. Perseverance is equipped with a fantastic set of instruments for studying the rock record of this ancient planet. Both PIXL and SuperCam have great capabilities for detecting all kinds of elements. SHERLOC, SuperCam, and PIXL can detect minerals using various techniques including x-ray fluorescence, Raman, and infrared spectroscopies. As a side benefit of the way SuperCam performs its Raman spectroscopy, it can also study time-resolved luminescence. Normally luminescence occurs over a broad wavelength range (most of Earth’s commercial lighting uses luminescence in some way or another). Two years ago, the SuperCam team was startled to find strong, narrow luminescence peaks at two wavelengths of 692.7 and 694.1 nanometers when they shot a light-colored rock with the laser. This luminescence comes from delayed atomic transitions in chromium atoms present in a corundum mineral structure. SuperCam can time the delay of the atomic transitions via the resulting photons, and so we could verify that this emission came from chromium in corundum. The results were published in Geophysical Research Letters by a team led by Ann Ollila earlier this year, so you can read all about it. The gemstone version of chromium-containing corundum is ruby. Prior to installing SuperCam on Perseverance, we placed a ruby in the laser beam and watched the entire room pulse a brilliant red as SuperCam’s laser beam hit the gemstone; it was extremely bright. While we haven’t found collectable rubies on Mars yet, the little corundum crystals are helping us learn more about Mars’ past. Corundum is a metamorphic and pegmatitic mineral which we would not expect to find on Mars, a planet that lacks plate tectonics. However, large meteor and asteroid impacts can create local metamorphism due to long-term heating from the impact. Because we are in a very ancient terrain near the rim of Jezero crater, we can expect some evidence of localized metamorphism. As the first mission in such terrain, we are learning new things. Earlier in the mission we tried this technique only rarely; lately we have carried out the time-resolved luminescence observations frequently on light-toned rocks to look for more evidence of impact effects. It’s great to have this unexpected tool on board as we delve further into Mars’ deep past. Want to read more posts from the Perseverance team? Visit Mission Updates Want to learn more about Perseverance’s science instruments? Visit the Science Instruments page Explore More 2 min read Newest Sample, Oldest Rock? Article 14 minutes ago 4 min read Curiosity Blog, Sols 5043-5049: Preparing to Drill at ‘Nazca’ Article 2 weeks ago 2 min read Tinga’s Tale Article 2 weeks ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA All Mars Resources Explore this collection of Mars images, videos, resources, PDFs, and toolkits. Discover valuable content designed to inform, educate, and inspire,… Rover Basics Each robotic explorer sent to the Red Planet has its own unique capabilities driven by science. Many attributes of a… Mars Exploration: Science Goals The key to understanding the past, present or future potential for life on Mars can be found in NASA’s four… Mars Perseverance Rover The Mars Perseverance rover is the first leg the Mars Sample Return Campaign’s interplanetary relay team. Its job is to…
