Perseverance takes a selfie to show off some of its samples

One of many most important jobs for the Perseverance Mars rover previous few weeks has been gathering rigorously chosen samples of Mars rock and soil. These samples have been positioned and sealed in particular pattern tubes and left in well-identified locations so {that a} future pattern return mission can accumulate them and convey the Martian samples again to Earth.

Perseverance has now dropped 10 pattern tubes and to rejoice, it took a few selfies with a number of of the pattern tubes seen within the designated “pattern depot” it’s creating inside an space of Jezero Crater. The realm of the depot is nicknamed “Three Forks.”

The selfie was taken by the rover utilizing its WATSON (Large Angle Topographic Sensor for Operations and eNgineering) digital camera on the top of the robotic arm on Jan. 20, 2023, the 682nd Martian day, or sol, of the mission.

The selfies are composed of 56 particular person WATSON photos that have been stitched collectively as soon as they have been despatched again to Earth. Seen on the bottom proper subsequent to the rover on this picture is the ninth tube that was dropped by Perseverance. Different pattern tubes are seen as nicely.

On this animated GIF, the rover appears to be like down on the pattern tube after which again on the digital camera, like a proud mother or father.

NASA says the depot marks an important milestone within the Mars Pattern Return marketing campaign, which is being collectively established by NASA and ESA, and plans and particulars of the mission are at present in improvement. Perseverance is the first mission to reveal this potential on Mars, and it might doubtlessly pave the best way for future missions that would accumulate the samples and return them to Earth for intensive laboratory evaluation. This primary depot will function a backup if Perseverance cannot ship its samples to a future robotic lander.

The depot location has been well-documented by each native landmarks and exact coordinates from orbital measurements so {that a} future mission might land close by and journey to gather the pattern tubes.

The sampling tools is kind of spectacular, and the stomach of the rover homes all of the tools and provides wanted to gather samples. It accommodates a rotating drill carousel, which is a wheel that accommodates totally different sorts of drill bits. Subsequent to which might be the tubes—there was 43 pattern tubes total in the beginning of the mission.

Whereas the rover’s massive arm reaches out and drills rock, the rover stomach additionally accommodates a small robotic arm that works as a “lab assistant” to the large arm. The small arm picks up and strikes new pattern tubes to the drill, and transfers crammed pattern containers right into a space the place they’re sealed and saved.

After a pattern is collected, the pattern tube is transferred again to the rover’s stomach. There, it’s handed off to the small inside robotic arm and moved to inspection and sealing stations. As soon as the tube is hermetically sealed, nothing can enter or go away it. The tubes are saved within the rover stomach till the workforce decides on the time and place to drop the samples off on the floor.

This pattern return potential is a part of the targets for Perseverance’s mission, which incorporates astrobiology and trying to find indicators of historical microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and previous local weather, hopefully paving the best way for human exploration of the Crimson Planet.