U-series dating data and Raman data

Similar to early Mars where aridification had remained for millions of years, the western Qaidam Basin in the north of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is extremely dry and covered by a broad area of playas since the Pleistocene. From the primary fluid inclusions within halite minerals in the salt duricrust, we found β-carotene, lipids and kerogen that were very likely of biological origin. The long-term preservation of these organic compounds within halite fluid inclusions for hundreds of thousands of years in an extremely dry region gives a clue to the search for life in evaporite flats on Mars.