Mars' surface hardened quickly, boosting odds of life: study

PARIS (AFP) - The crust that encases rocky planets and makes possible the emergence of life took shape on Mars earlier than thought and at least 100 million years sooner than on Earth, researchers said Wednesday.

Analysing grains of the mineral zircon extracted from a Martian meteorite known as Black Beauty, they determined that the Red Planet s outer layer hardened 4.547 billion years ago, only 20 million years after the birth of the Sun.