Wheels are installed on NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover inside Kennedy Space Center’s Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility on March 30, 2020. Perseverance will liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in July 2020. NASA’s Launch Services Program based at Kennedy is managing the launch. The rover will land on Mars on Feb. 18, 2021.
Wheels are installed on NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover inside Kennedy Space Center’s Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility on March 30, 2020. Perseverance will liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in July 2020. NASA’s Launch Services Program based at Kennedy is managing the launch. The rover will land on Mars on Feb. 18, 2021.
Wheels are installed on NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover inside Kennedy Space Center’s Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility on March 30, 2020. Perseverance will liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in July 2020. NASA’s Launch Services Program based at Kennedy is managing the launch. The rover will land on Mars on Feb. 18, 2021.
An illustration of NASA's Perseverance rover landing on Mars. Hundreds of critical events must execute perfectly and exactly on time for the rover to land safely on Feb. 18, 2021. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24342
An illustration of NASA's Perseverance rover landing on Mars. Hundreds of critical events must execute perfectly and exactly on time for the rover to land safely on Feb. 18, 2021. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24345
This illustration shows NASA's Mars Perseverance rover on the surface of the Red Planet. Perseverance will search for signs of ancient microbial life. It will also characterize the planet's climate and geology, collect samples for future return to Earth and pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24343
A high-resolution still image captured from cameras aboard the descent stage as NASA’s Perseverance rover touched down on Mars Feb. 18, 2021, is shown during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
A high-resolution still image captured from cameras aboard the descent stage as NASA’s Perseverance rover touched down on Mars Feb. 18, 2021, is shown during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
An illustration of the planet Mars, highlighting NASA's Mars Perseverance rover mission. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24348
This illustration shows NASA's Mars Perseverance rover on the surface of the Red Planet. Perseverance will search for signs of ancient microbial life. It will also characterize the planet's climate and geology, collect samples for future return to Earth and pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24346
Seen from below, NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover is in position in the aeroshell that will protect the rover on its way to the Red Planet. To the right of the middle wheel is the plaque that commemorates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and pays tribute to the perseverance of healthcare workers around the world. Featuring a snake-entwined rod to symbolize healing and medicine, the plaque was attached to the rover in May 2020 at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA23924
The Mars Helicopter, visible in lower center of the image, was attached to the belly of NASA's Perseverance rover at Kennedy Space Center on April 6, 2020. The helicopter will be deployed onto the Martian surface about two-and-a-half months after Perseverance lands. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA23824
The Navigation Cameras, or Navcams, aboard NASA's Perseverance Mars rover captured this view of the rover's deck on Feb. 20, 2021. This view provides a good look at PIXL (the Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry), one of the instruments on the rover's stowed arm. A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust). Subsequent NASA missions, in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis. The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is part of NASA's Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes Artemis missions to the Moon that will help prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24421
February 17, 2021, The Terminal Tower is illuminated in red to commemorate the Landing of NASA’s Perseverance Rover on the surface of Mars, February 18, 2021. Terminal Tower is a 52-story, (771 ft), landmark skyscraper located on Public Square in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland is also the home of the NASA Glenn Research Center.
NASA's Perseverance rover is moved during a test of its mass properties at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The image was taken on April 7, 2020. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA23829
Engineers perform mass properties testing on NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover inside Kennedy Space Center’s Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility on April 7, 2020. The rover was rotated clockwise and counterclockwise on a spin table to determine the center of gravity, or the point at which weight is evenly dispersed on all sides. Establishing the rover’s center of gravity will help ensure the spacecraft will land on Mars as calculated. Perseverance will touch down on the Red Planet on Feb. 18, 2021. Liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket is targeted between July 17 and Aug. 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. NASA’s Launch Services Program based at Kennedy is managing the launch.
Engineers perform mass properties testing on NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover inside Kennedy Space Center’s Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility on April 7, 2020. The rover was rotated clockwise and counterclockwise on a spin table to determine the center of gravity, or the point at which weight is evenly dispersed on all sides. Establishing the rover’s center of gravity will help ensure the spacecraft will land on Mars as calculated. Perseverance will touch down on the Red Planet on Feb. 18, 2021. Liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket is targeted between July 17 and Aug. 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. NASA’s Launch Services Program based at Kennedy is managing the launch.
Engineers perform mass properties testing on NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover inside Kennedy Space Center’s Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility on April 7, 2020. The rover was rotated clockwise and counterclockwise on a spin table to determine the center of gravity, or the point at which weight is evenly dispersed on all sides. Establishing the rover’s center of gravity will help ensure the spacecraft will land on Mars as calculated. Perseverance will touch down on the Red Planet on Feb. 18, 2021. Liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket is targeted between July 17 and Aug. 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. NASA’s Launch Services Program based at Kennedy is managing the launch.
Engineers perform mass properties testing on NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover inside Kennedy Space Center’s Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility on April 7, 2020. The rover was rotated clockwise and counterclockwise on a spin table to determine the center of gravity, or the point at which weight is evenly dispersed on all sides. Establishing the rover’s center of gravity will help ensure the spacecraft will land on Mars as calculated. Perseverance will touch down on the Red Planet on Feb. 18, 2021. Liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket is targeted between July 17 and Aug. 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. NASA’s Launch Services Program based at Kennedy is managing the launch.
Engineers perform mass properties testing on NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover inside Kennedy Space Center’s Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility on April 7, 2020. The rover was rotated clockwise and counterclockwise on a spin table to determine the center of gravity, or the point at which weight is evenly dispersed on all sides. Establishing the rover’s center of gravity will help ensure the spacecraft will land on Mars as calculated. Perseverance will touch down on the Red Planet on Feb. 18, 2021. Liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket is targeted between July 17 and Aug. 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. NASA’s Launch Services Program based at Kennedy is managing the launch.
Engineers perform mass properties testing on NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover inside Kennedy Space Center’s Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility on April 7, 2020. The rover was rotated clockwise and counterclockwise on a spin table to determine the center of gravity, or the point at which weight is evenly dispersed on all sides. Establishing the rover’s center of gravity will help ensure the spacecraft will land on Mars as calculated. Perseverance will touch down on the Red Planet on Feb. 18, 2021. Liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket is targeted between July 17 and Aug. 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. NASA’s Launch Services Program based at Kennedy is managing the launch.
Engineers perform mass properties testing on NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover inside Kennedy Space Center’s Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility on April 7, 2020. The rover was rotated clockwise and counterclockwise on a spin table to determine the center of gravity, or the point at which weight is evenly dispersed on all sides. Establishing the rover’s center of gravity will help ensure the spacecraft will land on Mars as calculated. Perseverance will touch down on the Red Planet on Feb. 18, 2021. Liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket is targeted between July 17 and Aug. 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. NASA’s Launch Services Program based at Kennedy is managing the launch.
An illustration of the planet Mars, highlighting NASA's Mars Perseverance rover and future human explorers. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24347
This illustration shows NASA's Mars 2020 spacecraft carrying the Perseverance rover as it approaches Mars. Hundreds of critical events must execute perfectly and exactly on time for the rover to land on Mars safely on Feb. 18, 2021. Solar panels powering the spacecraft are visible on the cruise state at the top. The cruise stage is attached to the aeroshell, which encloses the rover and descent stage. Entry, Descent, and Landing, or "EDL," begins when the aeroshell reaches the top of the Martian atmosphere, traveling nearly 12,500 mph (20,000 kph). It ends about seven minutes later, with Perseverance stationary on the Martian surface. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24311
Engineers test drive the Earth-bound twin of NASA's Perseverance Mars rover for the first time in a warehouselike assembly room at the agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California on Sept. 1, 2020. This full-scale engineering version of Perseverance helps the mission team gauge how hardware and software will perform before they transmit commands to the real rover on Mars. This vehicle system test bed (VSTB) rover is also known as OPTIMISM (Operational Perseverance Twin for Integration of Mechanisms and Instruments Sent to Mars). The Mars 2020 Perseverance astrobiology mission is part of America's larger Moon to Mars exploration approach that includes missions to the Moon as a way to prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet. Charged with sending the first woman and next man to the Moon by 2024, NASA will establish a sustained human presence on and around the Moon by 2028 through NASA's Artemis program. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA23964
On April 5, 2022, inside the Mars Perseverance rover control room at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, the rover team's deputy mission manager, Robert Hogg, and other team members interacted virtually with students who have overcome academic obstacles. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA25274
NASA’s Mars Helicopter is installed on the agency’s Mars Perseverance rover inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center on April 6, 2020. Perseverance safely lands on Mars, the helicopter will be released to perform the first in a series of flight tests that will take place during a period of about 30 days. The helicopter will be the first aircraft to fly on another planet. Perseverance, carrying the helicopter, will touch down on the Red Planet on Feb. 18, 2021. Liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket is targeted between July 17 and Aug. 5 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
Composed of 53 images, this mosaic looks west toward the rim of Mars' Jezero Crater on July 8, 2023, the 847th Martian day, or sol, of NASA's Perseverance rover mission. The rover's Mastcam-Z instrument captured the images when Perseverance was about halfway through a boulder field that was 0.6 miles (1 kilometer) wide. Arizona State University leads the operations of the Mastcam-Z instrument, working in collaboration with Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego, on the design, fabrication, testing, and operation of the cameras, and in collaboration with the Niels Bohr Institute of the University of Copenhagen on the design, fabrication, and testing of the calibration targets. A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust). Subsequent NASA missions, in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis. The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is part of NASA's Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes Artemis missions to the Moon that will help prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA25965
Members of the Perseverance rover Science Team pose on June 7, 2022, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which manages the mission. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA25328
Top center: The plate affixed to the aft crossbeam of NASA's Mars Perseverance rover — seen here on March 16, 2020, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida — carries 10,932,295 names submitted by people during NASA's "Send Your Name to Mars" campaign and essays of the 155 finalists in the "Name the Rover" contest. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA23770
This illustration shows the events that occur in the final minutes of the nearly seven-month journey that NASA's Perseverance rover takes to Mars. Hundreds of critical events must execute perfectly and exactly on time for the rover to land on Mars safely on Feb. 18, 2021. A metric version of this illustration is also available (Figure 1). Entry, Descent, and Landing, or "EDL," begins when the spacecraft reaches the top of the Martian atmosphere, traveling nearly 12,500 mph (20,000 kph). It ends about seven minutes later, with Perseverance stationary on the Martian surface. Perseverance handles everything on its own during this process. It takes more than 11 minutes to get a radio signal back from Mars, so by the time the mission team hears that the spacecraft has entered the atmosphere, in reality, the rover is already on the ground. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24285
February 17, 2021, The Terminal Tower is illuminated in red to commemorate the Landing of NASA’s Perseverance Rover on the surface of Mars, February 18, 2021. Terminal Tower is a 52-story, (771 ft), landmark skyscraper located on Public Square in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland is also the home of the NASA Glenn Research Center.
February 17, 2021, The Terminal Tower is illuminated in red to commemorate the Landing of NASA’s Perseverance Rover on the surface of Mars, February 18, 2021. Terminal Tower is a 52-story, (771 ft), landmark skyscraper located on Public Square in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland is also the home of the NASA Glenn Research Center.
February 17, 2021, The Terminal Tower is illuminated in red to commemorate the Landing of NASA’s Perseverance Rover on the surface of Mars, February 18, 2021. Terminal Tower is a 52-story, (771 ft), landmark skyscraper located on Public Square in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland is also the home of the NASA Glenn Research Center.
February 17, 2021, The Terminal Tower is illuminated in red to commemorate the Landing of NASA’s Perseverance Rover on the surface of Mars, February 18, 2021. Terminal Tower is a 52-story, (771 ft), landmark skyscraper located on Public Square in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland is also the home of the NASA Glenn Research Center.
The cone-shaped back shell for NASA's Perseverance rover mission sits on a support structure in this April 29, 2020, image from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Along with the heat shield, the back shell provides protection for the rover and descent stage during Martian atmospheric entry. Portions of the descent stage and rover, stacked one on top of the other, can be seen in the open area directly below the lower edge of back shell. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA23885
This is one of the first images NASA's Perseverance rover sent back after touching down on Mars on Feb. 18, 2021. The view, from one of Perseverance's Hazard Cameras, is partially obscured by a dust cover. The rover's shadow can be seen at left. A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Subsequent missions, currently under consideration by NASA in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these cached samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24268
SkyCam is a sky-facing camera aboard NASA's Perseverance Mars rover. As part of the Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA), the rover's set of weather instruments, SkyCam will take images and video of clouds passing in the Martian sky. MEDA was provided to NASA by the Centro de Astrobiología (CAB) at the Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial in Madrid, Spain. A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust). Subsequent missions, currently under consideration by NASA in cooperation with the European Space Agency, would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these cached samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis. The Mars 2020 mission is part of a larger program that includes missions to the Moon as a way to prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet. Charged with returning astronauts to the Moon by 2024, NASA will establish a sustained human presence on and around the Moon by 2028 through NASA's Artemis lunar exploration plans. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24174
This image of the rocket-powered descent stage sitting on top of NASA's Perseverance rover was taken in a clean room at Kennedy Space Center on April 29, 2020. The integration of the two spacecraft was the first step in stacking the mission's major components into the configuration they will be in while sitting atop of the Atlas V rocket. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA23886
Perseverance flight director Magdy Bareh and other members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Perseverance mission manager Keith Comeaux takes a selfie as the NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team begins to settle in to track landing in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Three of the six flight wheels that will travel to Mars can be seen attached to NASA's Perseverance rover (which is inverted on a handling fixture) on March 30, 2020 at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The protective antistatic foil covering the wheels will be removed before launch; the launch window opens July 17, 2020. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA23821
This illustration shows NASA's Perseverance rover casting off its spacecraft's cruise stage, minutes before entering the Martian atmosphere. Hundreds of critical events in the rover's Entry, Descent, and Landing sequence must execute perfectly and exactly on time for the rover to touch down on Mars safely on Feb. 18, 2021. The cruise stage contains fuel tanks, solar panels, and other hardware needed during the trip to Mars. About 10 minutes before atmospheric entry, it separates from the aeroshell, which encloses the rover and descent stage. The aeroshell makes the trip to the surface on its own. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24312
NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover reached its halfway point to Jezero Crater on Oct. 27, 2020 at 1:40 p.m. PDT (4:40 EDT), having completed as many miles — 146.3 million miles (235.4 million kilometers) — as it has yet to travel on its journey to Mars. In straight-line distance, Earth is 26.6 million miles (42.7 million kilometers) behind Perseverance, and Mars is 17.9 million miles (28.8 million kilometers) in front. This illustration depicts the curved trajectory of the spacecraft (seen in inset: cruise stage, descent stage, back shell, and heat shield, plus the rover and Mars Helicopter), noting the positions of Earth and Mars relative to each other both at the time of launch and the time of landing. The trajectory's curvature is a result of the Sun's gravitational influence on the spacecraft. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24232
This annotated image highlights potential routes that NASA's Perseverance team is considering in September 2022 for the rover to drive from the front of an ancient river delta to the rim of Jezero Crater. The team will continue to investigate the Martian terrain and consider the science potential of these options before choosing the rover's route. The Perseverance team and the U.S. Geological Survey collaborated on the base map seen here, combining multiple images from the High Resolution Imaging Experiment (HiRISE) camera with color from the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM), both instruments aboard NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). The HiRISE images used span a period from 2007 to 2017. Perseverance landed on the floor of Jezero Crater on Feb. 18, 2021. The delta, which Perseverance reached in April 2022, is a fan-shaped area where an ancient river once flowed into an ancient lake and deposited rocks and sediment. A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust). Subsequent NASA missions, in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis. The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is part of NASA's Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes Artemis missions to the Moon that will help prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA25244
This mosaic features a rover-eye view of the "South Séítah" geologic unit of Jezero Crater. Composed of 84 enhanced-color images that were later stitched together, the mosaic was taken on Sept. 12, 2021 (the 201st Martian day, or sol, of the mission), by the Mastcam-Z imager as the rover was parked on an elevated overlook just outside its entry point into South Séítah. An annotated version of this image (Figure 1) indicates the location of several prominent geologic features. At the top left and running about a third of the way to the center of the image is a portion of the delta front, a river delta that billions of years ago fed the lake at Jezero Crater. Below and to the right of that is a ridge nicknamed "Faillefeu" (after a medieval abbey in the French Alps). Farther to the right, at the top of the image is the distant peak called "Santa Cruz." While not a planned destination of the rover, Santa Cruz is geologically interesting since it has mineral signatures – seen both from orbit and by the rover (from its landing site) – consistent with alteration minerals, primarily clays. Near the top at the far right is a portion of the route Perseverance took to get to this location. At the time, Perseverance was traveling south, skirting the outside of the Séítah geologic unit. To the right (and out of frame), Perseverance would take a hard right and head northwest along a ridgeline just outside of Séítah. The Mastcam-Z investigation is led and operated by Arizona State University in Tempe, working in collaboration with Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego, California, on the design, fabrication, testing, and operation of the cameras, and in collaboration with the Neils Bohr Institute of the University of Copenhagen on the design, fabrication, and testing of the calibration targets. A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust). Subsequent NASA missions, in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis. The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is part of NASA's Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes Artemis missions to the Moon that will help prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24816
Perseverance flight director Magdy Bareh holds an empty jar after moving the final marble from the Perseverance Mars rover Earth launch jar to the Mars landing jar in a conference room of the Mission Support Area (MSA) Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover team has been moving one marble a day since launch from jar to jar. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Perseverance flight director Magdy Bareh moves the final marble from the Perseverance Mars rover Earth launch jar to the Mars landing in a conference room of the Mission Support Area (MSA) Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover team has been moving one marble a day since launch from jar to jar. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
NASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter can be seen on the belly of the Perseverance rover, ready to be dropped off at the helicopter's deployment location. This image was taken on March 25, 2021, the 35th Martian day, or sol, of the mission, by the WATSON (Wide Angle Topographic Sensor for Operations and eNgineering) camera on the SHERLOC (Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals) instrument, located at the end of the rover's long robotic arm. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24424
One of the navigation cameras on NASA's Perseverance captured the rover's tracks coming from an area called "Witch Hazel Hill," on May 13, 2025, the 1,503rd Martian day, or sol, of the mission. The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is part of NASA's Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes Artemis missions to the Moon that will help prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA26573
With its heat shield facing the planet, NASA's Perseverance rover begins its descent through the Martian atmosphere in this illustration. Hundreds of critical events must execute perfectly and exactly on time for the rover to land on Mars safely on Feb. 18, 2021. Entry, Descent, and Landing, or "EDL," begins when the spacecraft reaches the top of the Martian atmosphere, traveling nearly 12,500 mph (20,000 kph). The aeroshell, which encloses the rover and descent stage, makes the trip to the surface on its own. The vehicle fires small thrusters on the backshell to reorient itself and make sure the heat shield is facing forward as it plunges into the atmosphere. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24313
This image shows the abrading bit used by NASA's Perseverance to get beneath the surface of Mars rocks. It was acquired on Aug. 2, 2021, the 160th Martian day, or sol, of the mission, by the rover's Mastcam-Z imager. Mars rocks can be weathered and covered in dust, obscuring important details about their composition and history. The rover's abrader is the golden-colored disk with the three parallel lines of different lengths, arranged asymmetrically, in the center of the image. When the rover's drill spins and hammers with an abrading bit, that tooth pattern creates crisscrossing, well-distributed impacts in the rock. This chips away the surface and makes a smooth, flat patch of fresh rock about 2 inches (5 centimeters) in diameter. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA26577
This video from July 1, 2021 (the 130th sol, or Martian day, of its mission), shows scenes from the longest autonomous drive yet for NASA's Perseverance Mars rover, which landed on Feb. 18, 2021. At the beginning of the traverse on Sol 130, the rover's engineers manually drove past NASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter. Then the rover began driving autonomously, avoiding hazards and traveling 358 feet (109 meters) on its own. One of the rover's Navigation Cameras took the images about once every 16 feet (5 meters). They were processed to enhance the contrast. A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust). The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is part of NASA's Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes Artemis missions to the Moon that will help prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet. Subsequent NASA missions, in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis. Movie available at https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24743
Perseverance chief engineer Adam Steltzner is seen during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover landed on Mars Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Perseverance chief engineer Adam Steltzner gives remarks during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover landed on Mars Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
This high-resolution image showing one of the six wheels aboard NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover, which landed on Feb. 18, 2021, is shown during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The image was taken by one of Perseverance’s color Hazard Cameras (Hazcams.) A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Perseverance chief engineer Adam Steltzner gives remarks during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover landed on Mars Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Perseverance flight director Magdy Bareh and Members of NASA’s Perseverance rover team react in mission control after receiving confirmation the spacecraft successfully touched down on Mars, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Perseverance entry, descent, and landing phase lead Allen Chen and Members of NASA’s Perseverance rover team react in mission control after receiving confirmation the spacecraft successfully touched down on Mars, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
NASA's Perseverance Mars rover used its Mastcam-Z instrument to capture this view looking south toward the rim of Jezero Crater. The panorama, which encompasses 80 degrees, is made up of 59 individual images. They were captured on Aug. 4, 2024, the 1,229th Martian day, or sol, of the mission, and stitched together after being sent back to Earth. The color has been enhanced to bring out subtle details. "Dox Castle," a region the Perseverance science team wants to visit during the rover's climb up the crater rim, is about a half-mile (740 meters) away, on the left side of the hill at right. After the exploration of Dox Castle is complete, the rover will continue its climb up the crater rim, taking a route somewhere in between the two hills. Arizona State University leads the operations of the Mastcam-Z instrument, working in collaboration with Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego, on the design, fabrication, testing, and operation of the cameras, and in collaboration with the Niels Bohr Institute of the University of Copenhagen on the design, fabrication, and testing of the calibration targets. A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust). https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA26373
Perseverance's Radar Imager for Mars' Subsurface Experiment (RIMFAX) uses radar waves to probe the ground, revealing the unexplored world that lies beneath the Martian surface. Highlighted in blue in this visualization from the interactive tool Learn About Perseverance, the instrument's antenna is externally mounted underneath the Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG — the rover's nuclear battery) on the back of the Perseverance. The first ground-penetrating radar set on the surface of Mars, RIMFAX can provide a highly detailed view of subsurface structures down to at least 30 feet (10 meters) underground. In doing so, the instrument will reveal hidden layers of geology and help find clues to past environments on Mars, especially those with conditions necessary for supporting life. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24049
This annotated mosaic depicts a possible route the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover could take across Jezero Crater as it investigates several ancient environments that may have once been habitable. The route begins at the cliffs defining the base of a delta produced by a river as it flowed into a lake that once filled the crater. The path then traverses up and across the delta toward possible ancient shoreline deposits, and then climbs the 2,000-foot-high (610-meter-high) crater rim to explore the surrounding plains. About half of this traverse could be completed in Perseverance's prime mission (one Mars year, or two Earth years). For reference, the prominent crater near the center of the image is about 0.6 miles (1 kilometer) across. This mosaic is composed of multiple precisely aligned images from the Context Camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and has a resolution of 20 meet (6 meters) per pixel. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA24379
A serving tray with signatures from the NASA Perseverance Mars rover team is seen in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Perseverance Mars rover mission commentator and guidance, navigation, and controls operations Lead Swati Mohan studies data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team confer and study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance rover team react in mission control after receiving confirmation the spacecraft successfully touched down on Mars, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Bob Lineaweaver, right, and other members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance rover team react in mission control after receiving confirmation the spacecraft successfully touched down on Mars, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance rover team react in mission control after receiving confirmation the spacecraft successfully touched down on Mars, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover management team meet via remote and in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance rover team react in mission control after receiving confirmation the spacecraft successfully touched down on Mars, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team confer and study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team are seen reflected in a monitor in mission control as they await the spacecraft’s landing on Mars, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover mission commentator and guidance, navigation, and controls operations Lead Swati Mohan studies data in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Monitors show the status of NASA's Deep Space Network ahead of the Perseverance Mars rover landing, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Members of NASA’s Perseverance rover team react in mission control after receiving confirmation the spacecraft successfully touched down on Mars, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
"Perseverance Valley" lies just on the other side of the dip in the crater rim visible in the left half of this 360-degree panorama from the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity. As the rover arrived at this area in early May 2017, researchers began looking for clues about what process carved the valley. The rover team plans to drive Opportunity all the way down the valley into the interior of Endeavour Crater. The foreground and the area to the right are on the plain just outside of Endeavour Crater. The high point near the center of the image is called "Winnemucca," part of an Endeavour rim segment called "Cape Byron." Endeavour's interior and distant eastern rim are visible at upper left, above the notched portion of the western rim that sits directly above Perseverance Valley. The rover's Navcam took the component images of this scene on May 2 and May 3, 2017, during the 4,718th and 4,719th Martian days, or sols, of Opportunity's work on Mars, two days before a drive that brought Opportunity to the head of the valley. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21495
A jar with an Earth sticker and one marble inside and a jar with a Mars sticker full of marbles are seen on a conference room table of the Mission Support Area (MSA)on Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover team has been moving one marble a day since launch from jar to jar. The Perseverance Mars rover is due to land on Mars Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
NASA's Perseverance Mars rover captured this image of a rock target nicknamed "Quartier" with the WATSON (Wide Angle Topographic Sensor for Operations and eNgineering) camera belonging to an instrument called SHERLOC (Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for Organics & Chemicals). The rover uses a tool to abrade the surface of a rock (as with the circular portion in this image), removing dust, debris and other material that has settled on the rock's outer surface. After that's complete, instruments like SHERLOC can study the rock's composition. The white squares show areas where SHERLOC performed multiple scans with its ultraviolet laser. SHERLOC detected signals within Quartier consistent with organic, carbon-based molecules. If they are organic molecules – something that could be verified only by bringing the samples to Earth for closer study – they would have likely been formed by geological processes as opposed to ancient biological sources, but they represent the kinds of molecules Perseverance's science team are looking for. A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust). Subsequent NASA missions, in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis. The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is part of NASA's Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes Artemis missions to the Moon that will help prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA25919
Media Affairs Specialist, JPL, Veronica McGregor, moderates a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover landed on Mars Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Deputy Phase Lead for Entry, Descent, and Landing Aaron Stehura, gives remarks during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover landed on Mars Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Deputy project manager Katie Stack Morgan gives remarks during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover landed on Mars Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Mars 2020 Strategic Mission Manager Pauline Hwang, gives remarks during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover landed on Mars Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Deputy Phase Lead for Entry, Descent, and Landing Aaron Stehura, gives remarks during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover landed on Mars Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
This first high-resolution, color image to be sent back by the Hazard Cameras (Hazcams) on the underside of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover after its landing on Feb. 18, 2021 is shown during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Mars 2020 Strategic Mission Manager Pauline Hwang, gives remarks during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover landed on Mars Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Instrument Data Systems Operations team lead Hallie Gengle, gives remarks during a NASA Perseverance rover initial surface checkout briefing, Friday Feb. 19, 2021, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Perseverance Mars rover landed on Mars Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. A key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)