Tiny 'flower' formation spotted on Mars

陈小将

During its ongoing investigation of Martian rocks in Gale Crater, the Curiosity rover stumbled on a tiny surprise. The rock artifact, which resembles a piece of coral or a flower, is smaller than a penny.
好奇号探测器日前在火星盖尔陨石坑内的岩石上探查时，无意中遇到了一个小惊喜，发现了一块状似珊瑚或花朵的石头，体积比一美分硬币还要小。

The Martian "flower" and the spherical pieces next to it were likely "made in the ancient past when minerals carried by water cemented the rock," according to NASA.
美国宇航局称，这朵火星上的“花朵”和附近的几块球状石头可能是“远古时期水中矿物凝结成的石头”。

Curiosity took an image of the rock arrangement on Feb 24 using the Mars Hand Lens Imager, a camera located on the end of its robotic arm.
2月24日，好奇号用机械臂末端的火星手持透镜成像仪拍下了这几块小石头。