We identified the significant areas of interest to check out with Perseverance, prepared the tactical drive paths in between these locations, detailed the characteristics of desired anticipated samples, and built a top-level calendar predicting when we intended to achieve campaign turning points.
We have only been operating Perseverance considering that landing 9 months back, we have been preparing for the mission for far longer. Mars Perseverance Sol 135– Left Navigation Camera: A throwback to sol 135, when Perseverance was still on the Crater Floor Fractured Rough unit and had yet to go into Séítah. From the spring of 2020 till shortly before landing, the group developed the strategic objective strategy that would assist our daily rover operations even to this day– despite not knowing then where Perseverance would actually land! These early discussions focused not on developing the exact schedule that Perseverance would follow, however on developing the science top priorities and techniques that would help with the effective decisions we would have to make once Perseverance was roving on the ground.
Perseverances First Road Trip: This annotated picture of Jezero Crater illustrates the paths for Perseverances very first science campaign (yellow inbounds marker) along with its second (light-yellow hash marks). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona.
Quickly after landing, we used this strategic plan to our now-known landing location at Octavia E. Butler Landing and got to work constructing a detailed project plan to check out the Jezero crater flooring– this time equipped with brand-new images from the surface of Mars. We identified the significant areas of interest to check out with Perseverance, prepared the tactical drive routes between these places, outlined the qualities of preferred anticipated samples, and constructed a top-level calendar forecasting when we intended to accomplish project turning points. This project strategy is what has actually been assisting Perseverances expedition for the previous half year– naturally with variations as we see or find out brand-new aspects of the Jezero environment around us.
As the Campaign Co-Lead for the Crater Floor Campaign, it has actually been a humbling and interesting experience to see how our strategies have actually evolved from top-level tactical ideas a couple of years ago to the detailed, daily schedule and prepares that we produce every day. In this first year in Jezero, we have actually studied an abundant geologic history that we could not observe from orbit, and we have actually likewise seen how our early forecasts compare to the realities of operating a rover, which will notify our preparation for future campaigns. Mars is in lots of ways unforeseeable, however that simply makes expedition all the more interesting and fulfilling.
Composed by Vivian Sun, Science Operations Systems Engineer, Staff Scientist at NASA/JPL.
Creative rendering NASAs Perseverance rove at Mars Jezero Crater. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
6 months earlier, we started the dedicated investigation of the Jezero crater flooring, and now in December 2021 we are more than halfway through this first science campaign. Given that our first sampling experience at Roubion and our first sample pair from the Rochette rock, we have actually collected a second sample set, this time from a region of the crater flooring called Séítah at the Brac rock. As we now prepare to obtain our next, and third, sample set, in Séítah, we can have a look back at the actions that brought Perseverance and its team here..
We have just been operating Perseverance because landing 9 months earlier, we have been preparing for the mission for far longer. Our preparation started in the summer of 2019, when the science group started developing a geologic map of Jezero crater using orbital data, to develop a geologic framework that would help us evaluate our hypotheses on the ground. We still use this map every day in our everyday operations and science discussions, continuously referencing our working geological model for Jezero and updating it based on our newest observations.
Mars Perseverance Sol 135– Left Navigation Camera: A throwback to sol 135, when Perseverance was still on the Crater Floor Fractured Rough system and had yet to go into Séítah. This Navcam image looks across the Séítah “thumb” and covers Artuby ridge, at the top of this image, which Perseverance drove along en route to our current place in Séítah. In the middle of this image is where we would get our first sample set from the Rochette rock on sols 190 and 196.
From the spring of 2020 until shortly prior to landing, the group produced the tactical mission plan that would direct our everyday rover operations even to this day– despite not understanding then where Perseverance would actually land! We strategized various drive paths and sample collections based upon theoretical landing places, using information and our knowledge from orbital data only. For instance, if we arrived at the delta, how far would we drive down onto the crater floor? What rock types would be essential to sample, and which areas seem most appealing for tasting? These early discussions focused not on producing the specific schedule that Perseverance would follow, however on developing the science top priorities and techniques that would assist in the efficient decisions we would need to make as soon as Perseverance was roaming on the ground.