Mars rover

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This article is about autonomous exploration vehicles. For crewed vehicles on Mars, see Crewed Mars rover.
Self-portrait of NASA's Curiosity rover

A Mars rover is a motor vehicle that travels across the surface of the planet Mars upon arrival. Rovers have several advantages over stationary landers: they examine more territory, they can be directed to interesting features, they can place themselves in sunny positions to weather winter months, and they can advance the knowledge of how to perform very remote robotic vehicle control.

As of May 2021, there have been six successful robotically operated Mars rovers, the first five managed by the American NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory: Sojourner (1997), Opportunity (2004), Spirit (2004), Curiosity (2012), and Perseverance (2021). The sixth is Zhurong (2021), managed by the China National Space Administration.

On January 24, 2016, NASA reported that current studies on Mars by Curiosity and Opportunity (the latter now defunct) would be searching for evidence of ancient life, including a biosphere based on autotrophic, chemotrophic or chemolithoautotrophic microorganisms, as well as ancient water, including fluvio-lacustrine environments (plains related to ancient rivers or lakes) that may have been habitable.[1][2][3][4][5] The search for evidence of habitability, taphonomy (related to fossils), and organic carbon on Mars is now a primary NASA objective.[1]

Mars 2 and Mars 3 were physically tethered probes; Sojourner was dependent on the Mars Pathfinder base station for communication with Earth; Opportunity, Spirit and Curiosity were on their own. As of August 2021, Curiosity is still active, while Spirit, Opportunity, and Sojourner completed their missions before losing contact. On February 18, 2021, Perseverance, the newest American Mars rover, successfully landed. On May 14, 2021, China's Zhurong became the first non-American rover to successfully operate on Mars.

Missions[]

Multiple rovers have been dispatched to Mars.

Rover and lander captured by HiRISE from NASA's MRO on June 6, 2021
Zhurong Rover and lander captured by HiRISE from NASA's MRO on 6 June 2021

Active[]

  • Curiosity of the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission by NASA, was launched November 26, 2011[6][7] and landed at the Aeolis Palus plain near Aeolis Mons (informally "Mount Sharp")[8][9][10][11] in Gale Crater on August 6, 2012.[12][13][14] The Curiosity rover is still operational as of August 2021.
  • Perseverance, NASA rover based on the successful Curiosity design. Launched with the Mars 2020 mission on July 30, 2020, it landed on February 18, 2021.[15] It carried the Mars Helicopter Ingenuity attached to its belly.
  • Zhurong launched with the Tianwen-1 CNSA Mars mission on July 23, 2020, landed on May 14, 2021 in the southern region of Utopia Planitia, and deployed on May 22, 2021, while dropping a remote selfie camera on 1 June, 2021.[16][17]

No longer active[]

Sojourner disembarks Mars Pathfinder base station lander on the surface of planet Mars
  • Mars 3, Prop-M rover, landed successfully on December 2, 1971. 4.5 kilograms (9.9 lb) rover tethered to the Mars 3 lander. Lost when the Mars 3 lander stopped communicating about 14.5 seconds after landing.[18] The loss of communication may have been due to the extremely powerful Martian dust storm taking place at the time or an issue with the Mars 3 orbiter's ability to relay communications.
  • Sojourner rover, Mars Pathfinder, landed successfully on July 4, 1997. Communications were lost on September 27, 1997. Sojourner had traveled a distance of just over 100 meters (330 ft).[19]
  • Spirit (MER-A), Mars Exploration Rover (MER), launched on June 10, 2003,[20] and landed on January 4, 2004. Nearly 6 years after the original mission limit, Spirit had covered a total distance of 7.73 km (4.80 mi) but its wheels became trapped in sand.[21] The last communication received from the rover was on March 22, 2010, and NASA ceased attempts to re-establish communication on May 25, 2011.[22]
  • Opportunity (MER-B), Mars Exploration Rover, launched on July 7, 2003[20] and landed on January 25, 2004. Opportunity surpassed the previous records for longevity at 5,352 sols (5498 Earth days from landing to mission end; 15 Earth years or 8 Martian years) and covered 45.16 km (28.06 mi). The rover sent its last status on 10 June 2018 when a global 2018 Mars dust storm blocked the sunlight needed to recharge its batteries.[23] After hundreds of attempts to reactivate the rover, NASA declared the mission complete on February 13, 2019.

Failed[]

  • Mars 2, Prop-M rover, 1971, Mars 2 landing failed taking Prop-M with it. The Mars 2 and 3 spacecraft from the Soviet Union had identical 4.5 kg Prop-M rovers. They were to move on skis while connected to the landers with cables.[18]

Planned[]

Proposed[]

  • The JAXA Melos rover was supposed to be launched in 2022. JAXA has not given an update since 2015.
  • NASA Mars Geyser Hopper

Undeveloped[]

Examples of instruments[]

Curiosity's (MSL) rover "hand" featuring a suite of instruments on a rotating "wrist". "Mount Sharp" is in the background (September 8, 2012).
Opportunity's first self-portrait including the camera mast on Mars
(February 14−20, 2018 / sols 4998−5004) It was taken with its microscopic imager instrument

Examples of instruments onboard landed rovers include:

Mars landing locations[]

Acheron FossaeAcidalia PlanitiaAlba MonsAmazonis PlanitiaAonia PlanitiaArabia TerraArcadia PlanitiaArgentea PlanumArgyre PlanitiaChryse PlanitiaClaritas FossaeCydonia MensaeDaedalia PlanumElysium MonsElysium PlanitiaGale craterHadriaca PateraHellas MontesHellas PlanitiaHesperia PlanumHolden craterIcaria PlanumIsidis PlanitiaJezero craterLomonosov craterLucus PlanumLycus SulciLyot craterLunae PlanumMalea PlanumMaraldi craterMareotis FossaeMareotis TempeMargaritifer TerraMie craterMilankovič craterNepenthes MensaeNereidum MontesNilosyrtis MensaeNoachis TerraOlympica FossaeOlympus MonsPlanum AustralePromethei TerraProtonilus MensaeSirenumSisyphi PlanumSolis PlanumSyria PlanumTantalus FossaeTempe TerraTerra CimmeriaTerra SabaeaTerra SirenumTharsis MontesTractus CatenaTyrrhen TerraUlysses PateraUranius PateraUtopia PlanitiaValles MarinerisVastitas BorealisXanthe TerraMap of Mars
The image above contains clickable links
(view • discuss)
Interactive image map of the global topography of Mars, overlain with locations of Mars Lander and Rover sites. Hover your mouse over the image to see the names of over 60 prominent geographic features, and click to link to them. Coloring of the base map indicates relative elevations, based on data from the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor. Whites and browns indicate the highest elevations (+12 to +8 km); followed by pinks and reds (+8 to +3 km); yellow is 0 km; greens and blues are lower elevations (down to −8 km). Axes are latitude and longitude; Polar regions are noted.
(See also: Mars map; Mars Memorials map / list)
(   Active ROVER •   Inactive •   Active LANDER •   Inactive •   Future )
Beagle 2
← Beagle 2 (2003)
Bradbury Landing
Curiosity (2012) →
Deep Space 2
Columbia Memorial Station
InSight Landing
InSight (2018) →
Mars 2
Mars 3
Mars 6
Mars Polar Lander
Polar Lander (1999) ↓
Challenger Memorial Station
↑ Opportunity (2004)
Mars 2020
← Perseverance (2021)
Green Valley
← Phoenix (2008)
Schiaparelli EDM
Carl Sagan Memorial Station
← Sojourner (1997)
Columbia Memorial Station
Spirit (2004) ↑
Tianwen-1
↓Zhurong (2021)
Thomas Mutch Memorial Station
Viking 1 (1976) →
Gerald Soffen Memorial Station
Mars Landing Sites (December 16, 2020)

NASA Mars rover goals (circa 2010s)[]

NASA distinguishes between "mission" objectives and "science" objectives. Mission objectives are related to progress in space technology and development processes. Science objectives are met by the instruments during their mission in space.

The science instruments are chosen and designed based on the science objectives and goals. The primary goal of the Spirit and Opportunity rovers was to investigate "the history of water on Mars".[32]

The four science goals of NASA's long-term Mars Exploration Program are:

  • Determine whether life ever arose on Mars
  • Characterize the climate of Mars
  • Characterize the geology of Mars
  • Prepare for human exploration of Mars[33]
Panorama of Husband Hill taken by the Spirit rover (November 2005)

Gallery[]

  • Mars rovers

  • Soviet Mars rover Prop-M (1972)

  • Sojourner rover on Mars

  • Comparison of wheels: Mars Sojourner rover, MER, MSL

  • Comparison: MER, Sojourner rover, MSL

  • Comparison: MER, Sojourner rover, humans, MSL

Opportunity rover later visited its heat shield impact site; it was ejected during the rover's descent and impacted the surface separately.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b Grotzinger, John P. (January 24, 2014). "Introduction to Special Issue - Habitability, Taphonomy, and the Search for Organic Carbon on Mars". Science. 343 (6169): 386–387. Bibcode:2014Sci...343..386G. doi:10.1126/science.1249944. PMID 24458635.
  2. ^ Various (January 24, 2014). "Special Issue - Table of Contents - Exploring Martian Habitability". Science. 343 (6169): 345–452. Retrieved 24 January 2014.CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
  3. ^ Various (January 24, 2014). "Special Collection - Curiosity - Exploring Martian Habitability". Science. Retrieved January 24, 2014.CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
  4. ^ Grotzinger, J.P. et al. (January 24, 2014). "A Habitable Fluvio-Lacustrine Environment at Yellowknife Bay, Gale Crater, Mars". Science. 343 (6169): 1242777. Bibcode:2014Sci...343A.386G. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.455.3973. doi:10.1126/science.1242777. PMID 24324272. S2CID 52836398.CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
  5. ^ "Planetary Scientists Have Created a Map of Mars' Entire Ancient River Systems". Universe Today. 2020-12-30. Retrieved 2020-12-31.
  6. ^ "Mars Science Laboratory Launch". 26 November 2011. Retrieved 2011-11-26.
  7. ^ "NASA Launches Super-Size Rover to Mars: 'Go, Go!'". New York Times. Associated Press. 26 November 2011. Retrieved 2011-11-26.
  8. ^ USGS (16 May 2012). "Three New Names Approved for Features on Mars". USGS. Archived from the original on 28 July 2012. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  9. ^ NASA Staff (27 March 2012). "'Mount Sharp' on Mars Compared to Three Big Mountains on Earth". NASA. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  10. ^ Agle, D. C. (28 March 2012). "'Mount Sharp' On Mars Links Geology's Past and Future". NASA. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  11. ^ Staff (29 March 2012). "NASA's New Mars Rover Will Explore Towering 'Mount Sharp'". Space.com. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  12. ^ Webster, Guy; Brown, Dwayne (22 July 2011). "NASA's Next Mars Rover To Land At Gale Crater". NASA JPL. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
  13. ^ Chow, Dennis (22 July 2011). "NASA's Next Mars Rover to Land at Huge Gale Crater". Space.com. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
  14. ^ Amos, Jonathan (22 July 2011). "Mars rover aims for deep crater". BBC News. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
  15. ^ "Nasa's Perseverance rover lands on Mars". BBC News. 18 February 2021. Retrieved 2021-02-18.
  16. ^ Gebhardt, Chris (February 10, 2021). "China, with Tianwen-1, begins tenure at Mars with successful orbital arrival".
  17. ^ "First Chinese Mars probe successfully landed with a rover". www.golem.de.
  18. ^ Jump up to: a b "Mars 2 Lander". NASA NSSDC. Retrieved 2008-06-25.
  19. ^ "Sojourner". Archived from the original on 2015-03-20.
  20. ^ Jump up to: a b "Mars Exploration". 10 August 2012. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  21. ^ Boyle, Alan. "Good moves on Mars". MSNBC. Archived from the original on 2010-01-23. Retrieved 2010-01-22.
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  23. ^ "Mars Exploration Rover Mission: All Opportunity Updates". mars.nasa.gov. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
  24. ^ "NASA - Missions to Mars". nasa.gov. October 15, 2006.
  25. ^ de Selding, Peter B. (20 April 2011). "ESA Halts Work on ExoMars Orbiter and Rover". Space News. Archived from the original on May 24, 2012. Retrieved 2011-04-21.
  26. ^ Svitak, Amy (18 April 2011). "U.S., Europe Plan Single-rover Mars Mission for 2018". Space News. Archived from the original on May 24, 2012. Retrieved 2011-04-21.
  27. ^ "NASA - NSSDCA - Spacecraft - Details".
  28. ^ Kimberly W. Land (May 13, 2003). "A new way to explore the surface of Mars". NASA. Retrieved 2011-04-04.
  29. ^ The Tumbleweed Rover is on a Roll. Anna Heiney, KSC NASA. 11 March 2004.
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  33. ^ "Mars Exploration Rover Mission: Science – Looking for signs of past water on Mars". marsrovers.nasa.gov. Archived from the original on 2008-05-22. Retrieved 2008-06-25.

External links[]

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