NASA's Mars Perseverance Rover: New June & July 2022 Images | JPL

NASA's Mars Perseverance Rover: New June & July 2022 Images | JPL

Mars 2020-sol477-Left NavCam

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/PipploIMP

Hogwallow Flats-Mars2020-sol474

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Thomas Appéré

Mars2020-SWC-sol482

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/PipploIMP

Mars2020-SWC-sol480

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/PipploIMP

Mars2020-SWC-sol480

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/PipploIMP

Mars2020-sol424-Hazcam

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Mars2020-sol484-LeftMastcam-Z

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

June 28, 2022 Perseverance Rover Update: Sometimes Things Get Complicated

"Perseverance has a big job to do while roving across Jezero and exploring the Delta Front, which is campaign #2 of the mission. One of the major goals of this mission (and campaign) is searching for evidence of past life, and we know from studying deltas on Earth that fine-grained clay-rich rocks in these environments are some of the best at preserving ancient biomarkers. Biomarkers, or “molecular fossils,” are complex organic molecules created by life and preserved in rock for up to billions of years for certain molecular classes."

"Towards this goal, Perseverance is drilling core samples that will eventually be returned to Earth where future scientists can analyze them in advanced laboratories, using instruments and techniques capable of identifying and extracting organics, then characterizing their molecular structures in detail. These analyses can help determine whether any organic molecules contained in Martian delta rocks are biomarkers or abiotic (non-biological) organics. Sample return is one of the most important strategies this mission is using to search for evidence of past life in Jezero!"

"Perseverance and the science and engineering teams are working together to pick the right rocks to core, using a suite of onboard instruments to understand mineralogy, elemental distributions, and detect whether organic molecules are present."

Source: Denise Buckner, Student Collaborator at University of Florida

Mission Name: Mars 2020

Rover Name: Perseverance

Main Job: Seek signs of ancient life and collect samples of rock and regolith (broken rock and soil) for possible return to Earth.

Launch: July 30, 2020    

Landing: Feb. 18, 2021, Jezero Crater, Mars

For more information on NASA's Mars missions, visit mars.nasa.gov

Image Release Dates: June 23-July 1, 2022

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Mars #RedPlanet #Planet #Astrobiology #Geology #Jezero #Crater #Perseverance #Rover #Robotics #Technology #Engineering #JPL #Pasadena #California #UnitedStates #JourneyToMars #CitizenScience #STEM #Education