The mission to land the most advanced instrument yet in the middle of a crater on the Red Planet has been successful.
Perseverance landed last Thursday to search for signs of ancient microscopic life
Perseverance landed last Thursday to search for signs of ancient microscopic life
The Mars landing was shared at a @NASA press conference.
You can watch the spectacular moment here ⬇️
You can watch the spectacular moment here ⬇️
The high-definition video clip, lasting three minutes and 25 seconds, captures footage of the dramatic “seven minutes of terror” when Perseverance endured difficult conditions that battered the craft as it entered the atmosphere and approached the surface 
Space fans deciphered a hidden message in the parachute. It read "DARE MIGHTY THINGS" - the motto of Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Perseverance's chief engineer, said: "The internet has cracked the code in something like 6 hours! Oh internet is there anything you can’t do?"
Perseverance's chief engineer, said: "The internet has cracked the code in something like 6 hours! Oh internet is there anything you can’t do?"
The heat shield separated from the Mars Perseverance rover as it descended
The video, filmed in colour at 75 frames a second, shows action in fluid, vivid motion from several angles, the first such imagery ever recorded of a spacecraft landing on another planet
Mission deputy project manager Matt Wallace said:
"This was not a camera specifically designed for use on Mars. You can purchase the same camera off the internet"
"This was not a camera specifically designed for use on Mars. You can purchase the same camera off the internet"
🌌 First look at the Red Planet 🌌
Perseverance was able to take its first look at Mars's red, dusty surface as it floated down - at about 145 metres per second and 6 miles from the surface
Perseverance was able to take its first look at Mars's red, dusty surface as it floated down - at about 145 metres per second and 6 miles from the surface
🌌 The landing 🌌
As Perseverance is lowered, it kicks up dust on the ground that may have sat in the same place for billions of years.
The rover then touches down in a cloud of dust in the Jezero Crater just north of the Red Planet's equator
As Perseverance is lowered, it kicks up dust on the ground that may have sat in the same place for billions of years.
The rover then touches down in a cloud of dust in the Jezero Crater just north of the Red Planet's equator
Thomas Zurbuchen, NASA's associate administrator for science, called seeing the footage "the closest you can get to landing on Mars without putting on a pressure suit"
🌌 The view on the ground 🌌
The first images sent through were low quality. This was because dust was kicked up into the thin atmosphere upon landing, and because the pictures were taken by engineering cameras.
The high-spec cameras show the planet's bright magenta colours
The first images sent through were low quality. This was because dust was kicked up into the thin atmosphere upon landing, and because the pictures were taken by engineering cameras.
The high-spec cameras show the planet's bright magenta colours
Another colour image shows one of the rover’s six wheels next to several honeycombed rocks, which are thought to be more than 3.6 billion years old
Jessica Samuels, Perseverance's surface mission manager, said the rover was operating as expected so far and engineers were conducting an intensive check of its systems and instruments
One of the images shows the deck of the rover, featuring the PIXL (Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry), one of the instruments on its stowed arm
🌌 The Perseverance rover 🌌
⭐ Is the size of an SUV
⭐ Weighs a ton
⭐ Is equipped with a seven-foot-long robotic arm
⭐ Has 19 cameras
⭐ Is equipped with two microphones
⭐ Boasts a suite of cutting-edge instruments
⭐ Is the size of an SUV
⭐ Weighs a ton
⭐ Is equipped with a seven-foot-long robotic arm
⭐ Has 19 cameras
⭐ Is equipped with two microphones
⭐ Boasts a suite of cutting-edge instruments
🌌 Sounds from Mars 🌌
Sound was obtained from Jezero Crater.
It sounds like a low-frequency buzz, to the untrained ear. A Martian breeze is audible for a few seconds, as are mechanical sounds of the rover operating on the surface
Listen here ⬇️
bit.ly/3qOyfMa
Sound was obtained from Jezero Crater.
It sounds like a low-frequency buzz, to the untrained ear. A Martian breeze is audible for a few seconds, as are mechanical sounds of the rover operating on the surface
Listen here ⬇️
bit.ly/3qOyfMa
🌌 The view from above 🌌
Craters are seen littering the surface. A green dot marks where the Perseverance rover landed in a base image taken by the HiRISE camera
Craters are seen littering the surface. A green dot marks where the Perseverance rover landed in a base image taken by the HiRISE camera
Five rovers have now made it successfully to Mars, all of them NASA's. Thus far, they are the only ones to manage it at all, and they haven’t had one fail since 1999
🌌 Elation back at base 🌌
After the rover's descent, one NASA scientist could be heard saying jubilantly: "NASA’s back!"
After the rover's descent, one NASA scientist could be heard saying jubilantly: "NASA’s back!"
🌌 What next? 🌌
NASA hopes to put the first woman, and next man, on the Moon, ideally by 2024.
The return of humans to the Moon is intended to be a "stepping stone to Mars" in the 2030s.
Elon Musk wants to be there even sooner, having set 2026 as a goal to land humans on Mars
NASA hopes to put the first woman, and next man, on the Moon, ideally by 2024.
The return of humans to the Moon is intended to be a "stepping stone to Mars" in the 2030s.
Elon Musk wants to be there even sooner, having set 2026 as a goal to land humans on Mars
Would you visit Mars if you could? 🚀
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
