U-series dating data, Genomic data and Raman spectra 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.