NASAs Perseverance robber, which landed on Mars less than a week ago, has beamed back the very first audio recordings from the red planet’s surface.
NASA released the audio clips on Monday, along with never before seen video footage from the robber Nations last Thursday, and the most advanced images of Mars to date.
In addition to 25 built-in cameras, the rover also has two microphones. One did not work during the descent of the rover, but the other picked up the sounds of the Martian wind blowing past, as well as the humming sound of the rover itself.
The audio clip marks the first sound ever recorded on another planet.
“For those wondering how to land on Mars – or why it is so difficult – or how cool it would be to do that – look no further,” said acting NASA administrator Steve Jurczyk.
In the first shot, sounds from the rover itself are more prominent. In the second, NASA filtered the audio to make sounds from Mars clearer.
“Imagine sitting on the surface of Mars and listening to its surroundings,” said Dave Gruel, chief engineer for the rover’s camera and microphone subsystem, during a newsletter. ‘It is cool. Really neat. Overwhelming, if you like. ‘
Gruel said he was particularly enthusiastic about the audio recordings so that people with visual impairments can still feel the same excitement of reaching Mars as those who can view images and videos.
Mission team members said Monday they hope to hear many more sounds from Mars, including wind, storms, falling rocks, and the sound of Perseverance’s wheels as it moves or its drill bit as it digs into the surface of Mars.
Audio can also signal to scientists how well Persistence functions, and identify potential problems with the rover. But due to the harsh conditions on Mars, scientists are warning that the microphones may not last long during the mission.
Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, said the footage is “the closest thing to landing on Mars without putting on a pressure suit.”
Scientists have tried to hear Mars before. Microphones have traveled to the red planet twice – the Mars Polar Lander failed and the microphone onboard the Phoenix Lander was never turned on.
In 2018, NASA’s Insight Mars landed unexpectedly picked up similar sounds of vibrations from the Martian wind using the air pressure sensor and seismometer. But Persistence has captured the real work of the surface of Mars, using “commercial ready-to-use” microphones specifically for audio pick-up.
Perseverance will soon set to work looking for signs of old life in the Jezero crater. And in a decade it plans to be the first send samples from the red planet back to earth.