Three spacecraft from three different countries are to reach Mars this week! The United Arab Emirate’s craft began successfully orbiting Mars today, Tuesday, February 16, 2021- making it the first Arab country to reach Mars’ outer atmosphere. The UAE’s Hope Probe was launched on July 20th. It will spend 687 Earth days orbiting Mars- gathering data and studying the planet’s atmosphere.
China’s Tianwen-1 also reached Mars’ orbit this week. In May China plans to attempt to land a solar-powered rover launched from Tianwen-1 in an area of Mars named Utopia Planitia. It will study the Martian soil and atmosphere, chart maps, and look for signs of life.
NASA launched its Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover mission on July 30, 2020. It will reach Mars on February 18, 2021, landing at Jezero Crater in Mars’ northern hemisphere.
- Jezero Crater Photo Credit: JPL NASA
According to NASA, Perseverance’s mission is to:
• Explore a geologically diverse landing site
• Assess ancient habitability
• Seek signs of ancient life, particularly in special rocks known to preserve signs of life over time
• Gather rock and soil samples that could be returned to Earth by a future NASA mission
• Demonstrate technology for future robotic and human exploration
Go to https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/ to learn more about Perseverance and for opportunities to watch LIVE as it lands on the Red Planet!
- Image Credit: NASA
