The Perseverance rover is only a few months away from completing its 300 million mile journey to the surface of Mars, and NASA wants you to know about it.
Monday night, the space agency dropped a one-minute “mission trailer” that’s less like an ad for a highly anticipated science event, but more like a teaser for a new Ridley Scott movie – heartbreaking music and all.
Should Perseverance’s landing in the Jezero crater on Mars be successful, the tiny robot will be tasked with collecting climate and geological information, rock and soil samples, and signs of microbial life on the red planet. It launched in July and is expected to land on February 18, 2021, with live commentary from the event starting at 11:15 a.m. PST at nasa.gov/live.
Godspeed, Rover.