Researchers reported that Teghaza 001, an 800-gram meteorite found in eight fragments in the Malian Sahara in September 2022, is at least 4.1 billion years old and originated on Mars. One report described it as probably the oldest Martian meteorite on Earth, while another placed it among the three oldest. The meteorite was found about 34 kilometres from Bir Shali.

Researchers said its composition, including minerals and uranium-bearing cubic crystals, indicates that water once flowed through the rock. They said it probably came from Mars’s southern highlands and provides a sample of crust from an area not previously sampled. The findings support the possibility that early Mars had conditions suitable for life, but do not establish whether life existed there.