As of today, no human has ever walked on Mars, yet it is the most studied planet in our solar system. Compared to Earth, Mars is a relatively small, rocky planet with longer days and a thin atmosphere. It is the fourth planet from the Sun, and just like Earth, it falls into orbit with the Sun. Mars is commonly referred to as the Red Planet due to minerals in the soil that give Mars its red color. The planet’s rocky terrain and channels are thought to have once accommodated flowing water, but as of what we know today, Mars is inhabitable. Its thin atmosphere, composed of little oxygen and water vapor creates an incredibly cold and dry environment. However, according to previous missions, the Red Planet was once warm and wet, giving scientists reason to believe life may have existed on Mars long ago.
Who is Perseverance?
Although the Red Planet is currently incapable of supporting life, scientists are on the brink of discovering if life once thrived on Mars billions of years ago! In 2014, NASA landed two rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, which discovered evidence possibly indicative of ancient microorganisms. More recently, on Feb. 18, NASA landed its fifth rover, Perseverance, on the surface of the planet Mars. According to NASA, the newest rover landed on the Martian exterior at 3:55 p.m. EST after covering 293 million miles in the course of 203 days of travel. The $2.7 billion rover is similar to the size of a car and is equipped with a highly advanced radar, camera system and lasers. The use of these tools will be used to detect signs of microbial life that could have very well existed on Mars in the distant past.
Capturing Touchdown
The equipment attached to Perseverance includes a high-tech camera system that is being used to capture images of Mars, beginning with the rover seven miles above the planet’s surface. A microphone was also used in the hopes of detecting sound during the rover’s descent. Although the sound device did not gather working noise as the rover was in the air, some audible sounds of wind and the rover’s movements can be detected as it moved along the ground. A video of the landing captures a closing in view of the planet’s pinkish rocky surface. According to NASA, the video captured what NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory Southern California director, Michael Watkins, describes as “absolutely awe-inspiring.”
What’s Next?
The landing site of the rover was Jezero Crater, an ancient lake that is thought to have once flowed with running water. As the rover moves along the surface for the first few weeks, it will undergo testing and setting up NASA’s greatest hope for discovering remnants of microbial life. Eventually, Perseverance will be able to collect samples of rock and soil, which will be sealed inside the rover and later collected by a small rocket. Another space shuttle will then soon capture the samples and send them back to Earth, where scientists have the technology to hopefully make an out of this world discovery!
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