Astronomer-At-Large Fred Watson says scientists studying the interior of Mars' core shows different elements than Earth's core which suggests it had a "very different story" to tell from its origins.
"The way we probe the interior of the Earth is . to look at the way earthquakes are transmitted through the central regions of the Earth, that's how we know the Earth has a solid and a liquid metal core," Mr Watson told Sky News Australia.
"There is a spacecraft on Mars, it's now been switched off as of December last year . its job was to measure seismic waves travelling through the body of Mars . some recent analysis . has shown we can now track these seismic waves through the core of Mars, the central core.
"It turns out Mars' core is liquid so it's molten, it does not have a central solid core like the Earth does, and it's composition is quite different, the Earth's core is nickel and iron, mostly iron, now Mars' core seems to have a high percentage of some quite unusual elements, most notably sulfur and oxygen, which are much lighter than iron.
"What that suggests is Mars may have had a very different story to tell when it comes to its origins."