For the first time in nature, humans can detect noises on the surface of Mars. NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover will land on Mars in the Jezero Crater in about 20 days and check for evidence of primitive existence that could have been on the red planet in the past.
The rover, NASA's largest and most sophisticated rover ever designed, will function as a mechanical geologist, gathering soil and rock samples that will soon return to Earth by the 2030s.
For that cause, Perseverance is also the neatest computer ever sent to Mars, built such that no bacteria from Earth pollute the Martian specimens, producing a false reading.
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory live coverage will be accessible on the agency's website and NASA Television on February 18, the landing day, starting at 2:15 p.m. ET.
What's So Special With The Mission?
The latest phase in NASA's lengthy tradition of discovering the red planet is Perseverance. It draws on lessons gained with fresh targets from previous missions that will shed further light on Mars' past.
Launched in July, the spaceship still has approximately 25.6 million miles remaining from its 292.5 million-mile Earth-to-Mars adventure. And as it lands on Mars, the rover's trip to the surface of the Earth begins with a boom.
NASA's teams name it the 'seven minutes of terror.'
And only weeks after the touchdown, the spacecraft's video cameras and microphones will illustrate the rover's interpretation of this terrifying encounter.
Why Is It Called Seven Minutes of Terror?
The one-way light time it takes for radio waves to pass from Earth to Mars is around 10.5 minutes, which ensures that without any support or interference from NASA teams on Earth, the seven minutes it needs for the spaceship to land on Mars can take effect.
The ground teams notify the spacecraft when to initiate EDL (entry, descent, and landing), and the vehicle takes over from there. This is the "seven minutes of fear."
Allen Chen, Mars 2020 entry, descent, and landing lead at JPL, said per CNN report that this is the most critical and risky phase of the mission.
Thomas Zurbuchen, an associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, added in a statement that the task teams have done what they can to plan for a safe landing.
The spacecraft moves at 12,000 miles per hour to the top of the Martian atmosphere and has to slow down to zero miles an hour seven minutes later when the rover lands softly on the surface.
Like a meteor, Chen said, Perseverance would slump across the Martian sky.
Details Regarding the Mission
Astrobiology is a key goal of Perseverance's mission on Mars, including the pursuit of ancient microbial life indications. The rover will describe the geography and past weather of the planet, paving the way for the Red Planet's human exploration, and be the first task to collect and conceal Martian rock and regolith.
Subsequent missions, currently under NASA's consideration in cooperation with the ESA (European Space Agency), would deliver spacecraft to Mars to obtain and return these enclosed samples from the surface to Earth for in-depth analysis.
The Mars 2020 mission belongs to a larger program involving missions to the Moon to introduce the Red Planet's human exploration. NASA will set up a continued human habitation on and around the Moon by 2028 through NASA's Artemis lunar exploration plans, charged with returning astronauts to the Moon by 2024.
JPL, which Caltech manages for NASA in Pasadena, California, built and handles the Perseverance rover operations.
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