Written by Henry Manelski, Ph.D. pupil at Purdue College
This week Perseverance continued its gradual descent into the comparatively flat terrain outdoors of Jezero Crater. On this space, the science crew expects to search out rocks that may very well be among the many oldest ever noticed by the Perseverance rover — and maybe any rover to have explored the floor of Mars — presenting a singular alternative to know Mars’ historical previous. Perseverance is now parked at “Fallbreen,” a light-toned bedrock publicity that the science crew hopes to match to the close by olivine-bearing outcrop at “Copper Cove.” This may very well be a glimpse of the geologic unit wealthy in olivine and carbonate that stretches a whole lot of kilometers to the west of Jezero Crater. Gaining perception into how these rocks shaped might have profound implications for our always evolving data of this area’s historical past. Perseverance’s latest traverses marked one other notable transition. After rolling previous Copper Cove, Perseverance entered the “Forlandet” quadrangle, a 1.2-square-kilometer (about 0.46 sq. mile, or 297-acre) space alongside the sting of the crater that the science crew named after Forlandet Nationwide Park on the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard. Found within the late 16th century by Dutch explorers, this icy set of islands captured the creativeness of a era of sailors trying to find the Northwest Passage. Whereas Perseverance is within the Forlandet quad, landforms and rock targets shall be named informally after websites in and round this nationwide park on Earth. Because the rover navigates by way of its personal slim passes within the spirit of discovery, driving round sand dunes and breezing previous buttes, we hope it channels the perseverance of the explorers who as soon as gave these rocks their names.