Some of you spotted the special message I’m carrying to Mars along with the 10.9+ million names you all sent in. “Explore As One” is written in Morse code in the Sun’s rays, which connect our home planet with the one I'll explore. Together, we persevere.
Written along with the names of 10.9 million science fans who participated in the "Send Your Name to Mars" campaign is a hidden message etched into an aluminum plate on the side of the rover, which at first glance looks like an abstract image of the sun. But with closer examination, it reveals that the hidden message is written in Morse code.
On their Twitter account, NASA's Perseverance Mas Rover acknowledged the message in a post on Tuesday saying that the Morse code hidden message in the sun's rays written along with the 10.9 million names read as "Explore As One." This message connects our home planet with the one the Perseverance rover is about to explore, they wrote.
Some of you spotted the special message I’m carrying to Mars along with the 10.9+ million names you all sent in. “Explore As One” is written in Morse code in the Sun’s rays, which connect our home planet with the one I'll explore. Together, we persevere. https://t.co/Bsv1mqpxlA pic.twitter.com/GhcS1HgsIN — NASA's Perseverance Mars Rover (@NASAPersevere) March 30, 2020
Despite field-work disruptions brought by the coronavirus, the Mars rover is still scheduled to leave for it's planned launch date this July and expected to land on Mars in February 2021. It is set to explore Mars and look for signs of possible past life by collecting samples from the red planet's surface.
Once the Perseverance rover lands on Mars, it will be joining the Curiosity rover, which still functions and also the now-deceased Opportunity rover. But unlike the two rovers, Perseverance will carry the "first helicopter that will fly on another planet," according to NASA.
The American space agency's long-term goal is to be able to send a manned mission on Mars in the 2030s.
Also Read: Is There Life on Mars? NASA InSight Rover Detect Quakes
COVID-19 DELAYS NEXT MARS MISSION UNTIL 2022
The next Mars mission of the European Space Agency will be delayed until 2022 due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic. ESA, in cooperation with the Russian space agency Roscosmos, posted a statement on their website regarding the second ExoMars mission, known as Rosalind Franklin rover, that still needs additional testing.
Moreover, with the pandemic still going on, there have been concerns that this will affect the availability of the workforce needed to operate and maintain the rover.
But the NASA's Perseverance rover has reportedly not affected by the recent COVID-19 crisis. The team began reconfiguring the rover on March 21, so it can ride atop the Atlas V rocket.
NASA'S 'SEND YOUR NAME TO MARS' CAMPAIGN
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), through their 'Send Your Name to Mars' campaign, invited people around the world to submit their names to ride aboard their new Mars rove. They received about 10,932,295 names that were stenciled through the use of an electron beam onto silicon chips attached to an aluminum plate on the rover.
The illustration of the Earth and Mars joined by the sun that gives light to both planets is laser-etched on the rover's anodized plate that pays tribute to the elegant line art of the plaques onboard the Pioneer spacecraft and golden records carried by Voyagers 1 & 2.
Also Read: Over 10 Million Entries Sent to NASA's 'Send Your Name to Mars' Program
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