NASA’s Perseverance rover, headed for Mars, is trying to push boundaries by covering greater distances in one month. The Perseverance rover has also accomplished this feat more times than any rover has ever attempted. On March 14, the Perseverance would make its way into an archaic river delta in Mars’ Jazero crater. The lake was proposed to exist billions of years ago. The lake becomes a great place for the Perseverance to look for evidence of past microscopic life, and the rover plans to rely on self-driving vehicles. Read more to know the latest technologies that the rover would use to complete the same.
Yes, you heard it right. The Perseverance rover on Mars plans to become self-driving, using artificial intelligence. Upon completion of the 5-kilometer journey, begun on March 14, 2022, Perseverance will encounter an ancient river delta in Jezero Crater, where a lake existed billions of years ago. The rover and the team handling the rover thought it best to use the AutoNav system that has been applied to other rovers as well. But what makes the perseverance best to defend the case?
It’s time to get some work done on my AutoNav system as I head for my next science campaign in the ancient river delta. I take pictures of the terrain and AutoNav will use those pictures to help me avoid challenges during the 5km ride. pic.twitter.com/2FMREfo8jp
— NASA’s persistence Mars Rover (@NASAPersevere) March 18, 2022
Well, as NASA engineers said, Perseverance uses a very sophisticated system and self-driving for the rover is like a cakewalk. To understand how advanced this is, a small example can be taken: if the Opportunity rover took a minute to process self-driving data, it takes less than a split second to process the same. This allows the rover to travel greater distances than and is more efficient than the human-programmed propulsion of the Perseverance, enabling a clearer understanding of the Martian surface.
Perseverance Mars Mission
Since landing on Mars, the Perseverance Rover has tried to bring science fiction to life. The Mars rover mission is an important part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program. It includes the rover Perseverance and a robotic, coaxial helicopter called Ingenuity.
It was launched from Earth on July 30, 2020 on an Atlas V launch vehicle. It landed on Mars in the Jezero crater. As of March 21, 2022, Perseverance and Ingenuity have been 386 sols on Mars, which translates to 396 days on our planet. The Perseverance’s design is derived from the Curiosity rover.