2020 is a year that has tested us all. For some, it has been a test of compassion: do we pick up that extra roll of toilet tissue? For others, it has been a test living away from family and friends. But as we look back on March, peering down from our balconies or stepping out onto our front lawns, we see that in many respects, we have persevered.
The story of humankind has been marked by grueling challenges. Yet against all odds, we have turned even the most dire situations into opportunities for progress. You don’t need to be a historian nor an anthropologist to reach this conclusion.
A new symbol of our persistence will take the form of NASA’s latest mission to Mars.
Naming The Rover & Helicopter
Even at age 12, people can see how we are capable of extraordinary feats. At the very least, that is what Alexander Mather saw in NASA’s mission. Reflecting on what qualities define us as a species, this 7th grade student from Virginia proudly stated that “we as humans evolved as creatures who could learn to adapt to any situation, no matter how harsh.” For his insights, Alexander’s essay earned him the opportunity to name the Mars 2020 Rover: Perseverance. He is not alone in this naming opportunity. Accompanying Perseverance will be the world’s first fully autonomous helicopter. Like her younger counterpart, 11th grader Vaneeza Rupani won the honour of naming it: Ingenuity.
Details About the Mars 2020 Mission
On July 30, both Perseverance and Ingenuity will leave our planet at 7:50 AM EDT and make a 7-month journey to Mars. These projects, which are the result of decades’ worth of work, will help us uncover whether signs of life exist or have existed on our neighboring planet. This mission voyage is expected to last a minimum of 687 Earth days (1 Martian year) and is expected to land on February 18, 2021 on the Jezero Crater.
Based on orbital scans, the topology of Mars suggests water may have once passed through it. To test this possibility, Perseverance will search for evidence of clay and water erosion on nearby rocks and soil. If the rover’s results are positive, this means water was in fact present. This would also indicate a high possibility of finding preserved microbial life.
Features of The Rover Perseverance
To help the rover complete its tasks, NASA has equipped it with several precautionary safeguards. When it descends, a protective capsule and heat shield will keep all the equipment inside at 10 degrees celsius until the rover has passed through the atmosphere. Afterward, the parachute will deploy and Perseverance will quickly begin photographing the ground below. The images will then be compared to the map of the landing site stored on the onboard computer. If the images don’t match closely enough, the rover will change its course. Roughly 1.6 km from the surface, Perseverance will detach from its capsule and parachute and free fall for 300 meters. At a height of 1.3 km, the Sky Crane, which is the rover’s personal jetpack, will activate and act as a second high-tech parachute, lowering it to the ground.
Once the rover lands on Martian soil, it will truly start the search for life. To do this, Perseverance has an array of 7 extraordinary instruments from the head to the chassis. Mounted on the rover’s head and operating like a pair of eyes, the Mastcam-Z guides Perseverance on its mission. A third camera, the SuperCam, sits directly above them and helps the rover scan rocks and soil with lasers. Scattered across the mast and chassis, the Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) helps the rover collect weather data, such as wind speed and direction, humidity, and air pressure. It also provides the added benefit of collecting dust samples for analysis. Just nearby is the Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE), which is able to produce oxygen from the gasses found in Mars’ air, mainly from carbon dioxide.
At the rear of the rover, there is the Radar Imager for Mars’ Subsurface Experiment (RIMFAX). Like the name indicates, this is Perseverance’s personal ground scanner. Its job is to help us understand what the ground underneath its wheels looks like without having to blast a tunnel from the surface. In the front of the rover, we can find a tactical arm outfitted with the final two instruments. The Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry (PIXL) helps identify the chemical composition of Martian rocks and the Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals (SHERLOC) scans for organics and minerals affected by water.
Keeping Perseverance company, the helicopter Ingenuity is stored in the undercarriage until deployed. It does not need a human pilot and it has the battery capacity to fly for ninety seconds at a time. While it may seem like this length of time is too short, each takeoff puts us one step closer to understanding the possibility of flight on Mars.
Mars: A Possible New Home for Humans?
With all of its features, Perseverance will allow us to accomplish three key objectives. The first is finding life. The second goal NASA is concerned with is evaluating how habitable Mars could be. Using MOXIE and MEDA, the rover will determine whether humans could withstand the toxic gases and climate. If yes, Mars may be our new home in the future. The third goal is to conduct extensive environmental analyses to learn what the conditions on the ground are actually like. With the help of its instruments, Perseverance will observe seasonal changes as well as search for any evidence of liquid, subterranean water. If the rover come across anything worth saving, it will gather it with its arm and store it in a cache. Then, on a future mission, the goal will be to retrieve the samples and transport them to Earth for a final analysis.
Beyond The Mars Mission
This mission presents an ambitious agenda for our 6-wheeled traveler and its propellor-bearing companion, but should we expect anything less for such a tenacious duo? After all, both Perseverance and Ingenuity mark a milestone of human achievement. But if we want to keep pushing the limits of what is possible, we will need to ensure that future generations are ready for the challenges that lie ahead. People from across the world are full of potential, but they need the skills and mindset to take full advantage of it.
We believe that everyone deserves to make their dreams come true, whether on Earth or out there in space. To excel in the 21st century, we must teach students to be digitally literate and creative thinkers. At GSGF, we want to help young minds master future-ready skills, from coding to engineering, from an early age. With hands-on experience and sharpened skills on hand, students will leave our schools ready to accomplish anything, maybe even building the next Perseverance.
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