NASA’s great Perseverance rover landed on the Jezero Mars crater in February and has since brought humanity closer to the red planet by sending sound beats, images and much more. Now, researchers have said that the rover, through his images, also helped them see exactly where to look for life on Mars. Percy touched Jezero Crater and has since been snapping thousands of images of his surroundings. We’re definitely in the right place, ”said the scientists who manage the Persistence.
Their request is based on an analysis of photos sent by the mars rover. According to the team, the Jezero crater is the floor of a great lake that was fed by a meandering river that entered it from the west. Although the water body may have sustained life, it dried up more than 3.5 billion years ago.
Possible traces of microbes
From persistence observation, the researchers also discovered that the river system meets the lake. It then slowed its flow and eventually led to sediment deposition, leading to the formation of a wedge-shaped landform or Delta. According to the researchers, here life could have carried on. The team now aims to excavate potential remains of microorganisms that may have existed billions of years ago.
“The roaming team has long planned to visit the delta because of its potential to cherish signs of ancient microbial life. One of the mission’s main goals is to collect samples that could be brought to Earth through a frequent Sample Return effort -Mars mission, enabling scientists to analyze the material with powerful lab equipment too large to bring it to Mars, “NASA said in a statement.
For roaming perseverance
Perseverance landed on Mars on February 18, 2021, having traveled 471 million kilometers. Its first three months were inactive as NASA engineers thoroughly checked all of its equipment before putting it to work. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) revealed that the photographs that proved the existence of a lake in Jezero were taken during this time by two rover cameras, Mastcam-Z and SuperCam Remote Micro-Imager (RMI). The roaming is currently waiting for the two-week solar connection to end and will perform jobs such as dustwatch watch and weather analysis.
Studying the building blocks of ancient Martian life? Sounds like a case for SHERLOC & WATSON. My SHERLOC tool and WATSON camera help me search for organic and minerals that have been altered by aqueous environments. See how we investigate possible samples. https://t.co/vAAsFVEgUK pic.twitter.com/1N02ZPf7X3
– NASA’s Mars Rover Perseverance (@NASAPersevere) September 23, 2021
I’ve parked in a sweet spot between dunes and a rock outcrop, ready for a two-week solar connection, when the Sun blocks signals to and from Mars. During the quiet period, I’ll be tackling jobs I can do on my own, such as watching for dust demons and taking the weather.https: //t.co/f6M1Vz2Q5h pic.twitter.com/70xSLczS9Q
– NASA’s Mars Mars Rover Perseverance (@NASAPersevere) September 28, 2021