Mars 2020
Videos
Mars 2020 is a NASA mission that includes the rover Perseverance, the now-retired small robotic helicopter Ingenuity, and associated delivery systems, as part of the Mars Exploration Program. Mars 2020 was launched on an Atlas V rocket at 11:50:01 UTC on July 30, 2020, and landed in the Martian crater Jezero on February 18, 2021, with confirmation received at 20:55 UTC. On March 5, 2021, NASA named the landing site Octavia E. Butler Landing. As of 10 May 2024, Perseverance has been on Mars for 1146 sols. Ingenuity operated on Mars for 1042 sols before sustaining serious damage to its rotor blades, possibly all four, causing NASA to retire the craft on January 25, 2024.
Sample tubes being loaded into the Perseverance rover
The heat shield (left) and back shell (right) together make up the aeroshell for NASA's Mars 2020 mission. The diameter of each part is about 15 feet (4.5 metres). The rover and its descent stage were enclosed and shielded by the aeroshell during their deep space voyage to Mars and upon entry into the Martian atmosphere, which generated intense heat. The aeroshell was made by Lockheed Martin Space in Denver, Colorado, where the photo was taken.
Perseverance rover at JPL
Seven scientific instruments aboard Perseverance
Life on Mars
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The possibility of life on Mars is a subject of interest in astrobiology due to the planet's proximity and similarities to Earth. To date, no proof of past or present life has been found on Mars. Cumulative evidence suggests that during the ancient Noachian time period, the surface environment of Mars had liquid water and may have been habitable for microorganisms, but habitable conditions do not necessarily indicate life.
Mars canals illustrated by astronomer Percival Lowell, 1898
Alga crater is thought to have deposits of impact glass that may have preserved ancient biosignatures, if present during the impact.
Martian terrain
A series of artist's conceptions of past water coverage on Mars