{"id":25073,"date":"2021-10-21T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-10-21T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=25073"},"modified":"2021-10-21T12:28:51","modified_gmt":"2021-10-21T12:28:51","slug":"perseverance-pays-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/2021\/10\/21\/perseverance-pays-off\/","title":{"rendered":"Perseverance pays off"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Martian rover collected a rock sample on its second try<\/p>\n\n

\"\"
Two holes in the Martian rock nicknamed \u2018Rochette\u2019 show where Perseverance drilled to gather its samples<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

NASA\u2019s Perseverance <\/strong>rover has lived up to its name by successfully cacheing its first sample of Martian rock on Monday 6 September, after a failed attempt back in August. To prevent a second disappointment, the rover used its CacheCam to visually confirm there was Martian material in the sample tube after drilling. Another sample was acquired from the same rock on 8 September.<\/p>\n\n

The ultimate goal of the mission is to learn how Mars\u2019s climate changed over time, as well as looking for signs of past life by cacheing samples of rock that will be returned to Earth by a future mission. Perseverance is currently exploring Jezero Crater, which was once home to an ancient lake. It\u2019s uncertain how long the lake persisted or when it disappeared, but once the samples have been returned to Earth, geologists will be able to accurately date when they were created.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

\u201cThese samples have high value for future laboratory analysis back on Earth,\u201d says Dr Mitch Schulte, NASA\u2019s mission programme scientist. \u201cOne day, we may be able to work out the sequence and timing of the environmental conditions that this rock\u2019s minerals represent. This will help answer the question of the history and stability of liquid water on Mars.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

The rover\u2019s next sample site will be from South S\u00e9\u00edtah, a series of ridges and sand dunes 200m away. This region is expected to be much older, giving a window onto a different era of Mars\u2019s history. mars.nasa.gov\/mars2020<\/a><\/p>\n\n

\n\n
Comment by Chris Lintott<\/strong><\/strong><\/h5>\n\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n

The plan to retrieve this and Perseverance\u2019s other samples starts with a joint NASA and ESA mission to touch down near to Perseverance in 2026.<\/p>\n\n

An as-yet-undesigned rover will bustle about collecting samples left by Perseverance, and return them to a rocket that\u2019s also still on the drawing board. That rocket lifts the samples into low Mars orbit, to be met by another new spacecraft, which returns the samples to Earth by 2031.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

That\u2019s three new spacecraft attempting a feat unmatched by anything since Apollo, at a time when NASA and ESA are both stretched in different directions.<\/p>\n\n

I struggle to believe it will happen on any sensible timescale. If it does, it\u2019ll be because the thought of the samples Perseverance is collecting \u2013 sitting there, ready but out of reach \u2013 is too tempting to resist. Mars\u2019s answers are waiting for us now if we can afford to go and get them.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Chris Lintott co-presents The Sky at Night <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Photo: NASA\/JPL-CALTECH<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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