Category: perseverance

July 27, 2020 NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover is heading to the Red Planet to search for signs of ancient life, collect samples for future return to Earth and help pave the way for human exploration. The rover will carry with it several technology demonstrations including a helicopter, which will attempt humanity’s first powered flight… Continue reading Mission Overview: NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover

July 30, 2020 To get ready for the launch of the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover, NASA invited the public to join a global, collective #CountdownToMars project. Fans from around the world recorded videos of their creative countdowns, giving Perseverance a celebratory sendoff for its launch on July 30, 2020.

July 30, 2020 NASA’s Perseverance Rover began its long journey to Mars today by successfully launching from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on a ULA Atlas V rocket. It now begins its seven-month journey to the Red Planet, landing there on Feb. 18, 2021. Perseverance will seek signs of ancient microbial life on Mars along… Continue reading NASA’s Perseverance Rover Launches to Mars

October 06, 2020 While NASA’s Mars rover Perseverance travels through space toward the Red Planet, its nearly identical rover twin is hard at work on Earth. The vehicle system test bed (VSTB) rover named OPTIMISM is a full-scale engineering version of the Mars-bound  rover. It is used to test hardware and software before the commands… Continue reading Twin of NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover Now on the Move

November 10, 2020 To prepare the Perseverance rover for its date with Mars, NASA’s Mars 2020 mission team conducted a wide array of tests to help ensure a successful entry, descent and landing at the Red Planet. From parachute verification in the world’s largest wind tunnel, to hazard avoidance practice in Death Valley, California, to… Continue reading Preparing to Land Perseverance

November 24, 2020 MOXIE engineer Asad Aboobaker of JPL explains how the instrument works in this video interview.

December 21, 2020 ​After nearly 300 million miles (470 million km), NASA’s Perseverance rover completes its journey to Mars on Feb. 18, 2021. But, to reach the surface of the Red Planet, it has to survive the harrowing final phase known as Entry, Descent, and Landing.

December 21, 2020 Animations for media and public use. This reel depicts key events during entry, descent, and landing that will occur when NASA’s Perseverance rover lands on Mars February 18, 2021. In the span of about seven minutes, the spacecraft slows down from about 12,100 mph (19,500 kph) at the top of the Martian… Continue reading NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover Landing Animations

December 22, 2020 One key activity for NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover, which is on its way to the Red Planet, will be to collect samples of Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust) for future return to Earth. Because scientists want to be confident that any signs of ancient life they might observe in… Continue reading Perseverance’s Sample Tubes Ready for Mars

February 12, 2021 All landings on Mars are difficult, but NASA’s Perseverance rover is attempting to touch down in the most challenging terrain on Mars ever targeted. The intense entry, descent, and landing phase, known as EDL, begins when the spacecraft reaches the top of the Martian atmosphere. Engineers have referred to the time it… Continue reading NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover Landing in Most Difficult Site Ever Attempted