Panoramic images transmitted by NASA’s Curiosity rover reveal intricate, web-like rock formations on the slopes of Mount Sharp within Mars’ Gale Crater, prompting further investigation into the planet’s past aqueous environments.
The formations, dubbed “boxwork,” consist of intersecting ridges approximately 3 to 6 feet tall, with sandy hollows between them. These structures were initially observed from orbit and appeared as sprawling, spiderweb-like patterns. Close-up images captured by Curiosity’s Mastcam instrument on September 26, 2025, provide unprecedented detail of the terrain, according to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Scientists hypothesize that the ridges formed as groundwater circulated through fractures in the rock, depositing minerals that hardened specific zones. Over billions of years, wind erosion then removed the weaker surrounding material, leaving behind the more resilient lattice of ridges. The discovery builds on earlier findings by Curiosity that identified chemical and mineral evidence of past habitable environments on Mars, suggesting the planet once possessed conditions suitable for microbial life.
In a February 2026 report, researchers noted that non-biological processes alone could not fully explain the abundance of organic compounds discovered in a sample collected by Curiosity in Gale Crater. The sample, drilled from a rock called “Cumberland,” contained the largest organic molecules yet found on Mars, hypothesized to be fragments of fatty acids preserved in ancient mudstone. The presence of these molecules, combined with the evidence of past water indicated by the boxwork formations, continues to fuel the search for evidence of past or present life on Mars.
Curiosity, launched in November 2011 and landing on Mars in August 2012, continues to operate well beyond its original two-year mission. As of September 27, 2025, the rover had traveled 35.97 kilometers (22.35 miles) across the Martian surface. The rover’s ongoing exploration of Mount Sharp is intended to further investigate the planet’s climate and geology, and assess its potential for habitability.
NASA has not announced a timeline for further analysis of the boxwork formations or a potential search for additional organic compounds in the area.
