Perseverance Rover
Searching for ancient life on Mars. Perseverance landed in Jezero Crater in 2021 to search for signs of ancient life and collect samples. Its helicopter partner and biggest finds.
Perseverance's selfie at Rochette: NASA, Public domain
Why Jezero Crater
Perseverance landed in Jezero Crater, which held a lake billions of years ago. A river delta at its edge is the kind of place where, on Earth, sediments preserve traces of microbial life. The rover's mission is to search for signs of ancient life and collect rock samples for possible return to Earth.
A laboratory on wheels
Perseverance carries cameras, a ground-penetrating radar, instruments that use lasers and X-rays to read the chemistry of rocks, and a drill that fills sample tubes. Its MOXIE experiment made oxygen from the carbon dioxide atmosphere, a small test for future human missions.
In 2024 it found a rock nicknamed Cheyava Falls with features that, on Earth, can be linked to microbes. Scientists stress it is a possible biosignature that needs more study, ideally in labs on Earth.
Ingenuity
The rover carried Ingenuity, a 1.8 kg helicopter. On April 19, 2021, it made the first powered, controlled flight on another planet. Planned for five test flights, it flew 72 times before a damaged rotor ended its mission in January 2024.
Perseverance shares its design with Curiosity, which landed in Gale Crater in 2012 and is still exploring, so two nuclear-powered rovers are working on Mars at the same time, in two very different ancient environments.
Sample return
Perseverance has sealed many tubes of rock, soil and air. NASA and ESA have studied how to bring them to Earth, but the plan's cost and timing have been under review, so check NASA for the latest. Either way, Perseverance keeps exploring the crater rim and beyond.
Following along
NASA posts Perseverance's raw images online soon after they arrive, so anyone can browse the latest views from Mars. The rover has more than 20 cameras, and its microphones recorded the first sounds from the Martian surface, including wind and the hum of Ingenuity's rotors. Its route map lets you follow the climb up the crater rim day by day, a reminder that exploration on Mars is slow, careful and full of surprises.
- Perseverance's selfie at Rochette: NASA, Public domain
Text written by Planetinio.
