The Perseverance rover has actually taken its first sample from the Jezero delta on Mars.
NASAs Mars Perseverance Rover has taken its very first sample from the Jezero delta!
Considering that getting to the delta, “Percy” has actually been observing and abrading different rocks to examine whether they are a great candidate for our first core sample in this area. It wasnt a simple start, as the first couple of rocks that were examined either fractured too easily or had surfaces that were too rough to securely put the drill. What the group required was a rock that fulfilled the following requirements:
Mars Perseverance Sol 482: WATSON Camera: The abraded patch Thornton Gap. Keep in mind the visible clasts in the rock. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
The very first activity the rover performed on this rock was an abrasion called Thornton Gap, and right away the group became thrilled. The abrasion was extremely successful, exposing the inner surface of the rock without fracturing the surrounding location.
Mars Perseverance Sol 490– Left Navigation Camera: The abraded patch and coring borehole on the rock Skinner Ridge. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
It turned out to be a wonderful option. Collecting the core went very efficiently, and it was called Swift Run. At 6.70 cm (2.6 inches) long, it is our longest core of the objective so far. Possibly even more exciting was to see that those exact same clasts noticeable in the abraded spot were also noticeable in the core. The drill data revealed that the rock was one of the softer ones we have actually cored so far. It just needed low levels of percussion to make progress through the rock, sometimes switching off percussion entirely when rotary-only drilling was sufficient.
Mars Perseverance Sol 490– Right Mastcam-Z Camera: The Swift Run core inside the coring bit. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU
One last note for anyone wondering where these names originate from. The Perseverance mission names locations after different nationwide parks on Earth. Cores, abrasions, and rocks are provided names associated to the present area. The rover is currently in the Shenandoah quadrangle, called for the U.S. National Park in Virginia. Skinner Ridge, Thornton Gap, and Swift Run are all functions in Shenandoah.
Written by Iona Brockie, Sampling Engineer at NASA/JPL
The very best candidate was a rock called Skinner Ridge.
Since getting here at the delta, “Percy” has been observing and abrading different rocks to investigate whether they are a great candidate for our first core sample in this location. It wasnt an easy start, as the first few rocks that were evaluated either fractured too easily or had surfaces that were too rough to securely place the drill. The very first activity the rover conducted on this rock was an abrasion called Thornton Gap, and immediately the team ended up being fired up. The drill information revealed that the rock was one of the softer ones we have cored so far. Cores, abrasions, and rocks are provided names associated to the current location.
clinically fascinating,
a manageable amount of surface topography,
big adequate to fit an abrasion and 2 cores, and
forecasted to be robust to drilling.