In its first attempt, the mobile robot Perseverns failed to take a rock sample from Mars, NASA has announced.

This robot is expected to collect about 30 samples and return them to Earth within years for analysis.

NASA published images Friday that clearly showed a small pile next to the vehicle's shadow with a hole in the center, the first that the robot drilled on Mars.

NASA's Director of Science, Thomas Zorbucken, wrote on his Twitter page at the time: "Sample collection started!"

However, data sent to Earth by the vehicle indicate that no sample was collected at this first attempt at rock sampling, according to AFP.

In a statement, the Agency quoted Zorbuken as saying: "That's not the outcome we were looking for... There's always a risk of starting an unprecedented exploration. I am confident that we have the right team for this process and will persevere to find a solution to ensure future success. "

The process of collecting a specimen, which is the size of a cooker and is placed inside a tightly enclosed tube, is expected to take a total of about 11 days, inevitably to search for signs of ancient life on the red planet, such as traces of microbial life fossilized in rocks.

The collection of Mars samples also aims to better understand the geology of Mars.

The Martian mission was reported to have begun from Florida a year and a half ago, and the Persevernes robot, the size of a large SUV, landed on February 18 at Jezero Crater which scientists believe was a deep lake 3.5 billion years ago.

This environment on Mars is believed to have created the necessary conditions for life outside the planet.

NASA is planning a mission to return samples to Earth in the 1930s for analysis using more sophisticated tools than those that can be brought to Mars.