autoevolution
 

Amazing Close-Ups of Mars Prove Rocks Are Just Rocks Everywhere

Given how we humans are targeting Mars with a crewed mission in the not so distant future, there’s an increased interest in what’s going on on the Red Planet. And with all the hardware already in place up there, both in orbit and on the surface, there’s no shortage of news coming from millions of miles away.
Martian landscape as seen by Perseverance 13 photos
Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU
Martian landscape as seen by PerseveranceMartian landscape as seen by PerseveranceMartian landscape as seen by PerseveranceMartian landscape as seen by PerseveranceMartian landscape as seen by PerseveranceMartian landscape as seen by PerseveranceMartian landscape as seen by PerseveranceMartian landscape as seen by PerseveranceMartian landscape as seen by PerseveranceMartian landscape as seen by PerseveranceMartian landscape as seen by PerseveranceMartian landscape as seen by Perseverance
The latest machine to be sent to Mars to study it is the Perseverance rover. Having arrived there just a few short months ago, the rover is yet to deliver the expected results of its primary mission (searching for signs of life in the Martian soil), but it does keep us busy with some extraordinary images it keeps sending back.

The most recent of the bunch was just published by NASA, and they show the “boundary between rough rocks and soft dunes” as seen by Perseverance during his most recent travels.

The funny thing about all these images (check gallery for more) is that, if we didn’t know they come from another planet, we might just as easily have discarded them as showing just some boring-looking rocks. And, for all intents and purposes, that’s what they are.

Perseverance is presently located in a vast region of Mars called Jezero Crater (check map below for the exact location, including that of the Ingenuity helicopter). It’s been 173 Martian days since it landed there, and traveled just 1.23 miles (1.97 km) since arriving. That would be a speed of just 37 feet (11 meters) per day, ideal for all the sightseeing the rover seems to be doing up there.

When the rover will eventually get its act together, it will be tasked with searching for signs of life, but also the collection of rocks and regolith samples that may be picked up by a future mission and brought to Earth for study.
If you liked the article, please follow us:  Google News icon Google News Youtube Instagram X (Twitter)
About the author: Daniel Patrascu
Daniel Patrascu profile photo

Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies.
Full profile

 

Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?

You will only receive our top stories