NASA rover sets off-planet driving distance record on Mars

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 13 Oct, 11:02 · Archive

NASA's Perseverance rover has driven farther than any other vehicle on any world except Earth.

NASA's Perseverance rover has driven 45.2 kilometres on Mars since arriving in 2021, surpassing the previous record of 45 kilometres set by NASA's Opportunity rover between 2004 and 2018. The car-sized, six-wheeled rover is now the vehicle that has travelled farther than any other on the surface of any world other than Earth, exceeding the driving distances of any lunar rover.

The rover is exploring the Jezero Crater in Mars's northern hemisphere, a region believed to have been flooded with water and home to a lake basin billions of years ago. Its mission is to explore whether conditions conducive to microbial life ever existed on the planet. During its recent milestone journey, Perseverance travelled towards an area called Idubi through a region off the crater's western rim nicknamed Lac de Charmes.

Project manager Steven Lee told Reuters that the rover's engineering hardware and instruments are in excellent shape with all redundant systems still available. He said a recent assessment concluded they are capable of operating well into the 2030s, likely beyond. NASA attributes much of Perseverance's success to its autonomous self-driving capability, with 90 per cent of its drives performed without human intervention. The rover's mobility systems are being tested to show it can drive 100 kilometres or more, with hardware undergoing testing equivalent to 150 to 300 kilometres of travel.

How it is being reported

• NASA rover breaks record for off-planet driving on MarsThe US space agency's robotic Perseverance rover has now driven farther than any other vehicle on the surface of any world other than Earth.The West Australian · 13 Oct, 10:52
• NASA rover breaks record for off-planet driving on MarsThe US space agency's robotic Perseverance rover has now driven farther than any other vehicle on the surface of any world other than Earth.Perth Now · 13 Oct, 10:52

In this story: NASA · Perseverance · Mars · Jezero Crater · Steven Lee · Opportunity · Curiosity

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