The intriguing chemistry of a rock collected by the Perseverance rover could trace to microbial activity—or not ...

Photograph by blickwinkel/Alamy Rocks themselves are made of clusters ... Emeralds are formed of a mineral called beryl whose chemical formula is a complex mix of beryllium, aluminum, silicon ...

Scientists discovered that rocks could be timepieces -- literally. Many chemical elements in rock exist in a number of slightly different forms, known as isotopes. Certain isotopes are unstable ...

Certain rocks as much as three billion years old have been found to contain organic compounds. What these compounds are and how they may have originated in living matter is under active study ...

Substances in river water react with minerals in rocks and cause chemical weathering Weathering close weatheringWeathering breaks down rocks on the surface of the Earth into smaller pieces.