The Mars rover Perseverance has had a “stowaway” for 120 days. What is it?
The rover, which weighs over a ton, has been carrying an extra load for four months. It is a stone which fell into one of its wheels. So far it has covered over 8.5 kilometers with Perseverance.
The Perseverance rover has been working on Mars since Feb. 18, 2021. For the first year, it collected six samples of Martian soil. These are expected to be transported to Earth in future missions. Perseverance also carries with it the Ingenuity helicopter, which has taken to the rarefied Martian air several times.
Ingenuity, however, is not the only passenger on the Mars rover, affectionately known as Percy. NASA reported that for more than 120 Martian days — or salt — Percy has been carrying some unplanned cargo. It is a rock that has fallen into his front left wheel. And which refuses to fall out.
Cameras that look out for danger
NASA reported that the rock appeared aboard Perseverance on February 4, 2022. It does not adversely affect the operation of the device or threaten the mission’s science objectives. It represents only a minor annoyance. Exactly the same as a pebble that falls into a man’s shoe.
The scientists learned of the stowaway’s existence through one of the Hazard Avoidance Camera (Hazcam) cameras. Percy has six of them — four in the front and two in the back. They are not scientific instruments. Their purpose is to look out for hazards ahead and behind the rover, such as faults, rocks and sand dunes.
All of the Hazcam cameras are fixed and point downward. Since they have a wide viewing angle — 120 degrees — in total they collect information about the entire environment of the rover. Their work produces a 3D image that is continuously analyzed by the device. The 3D view allows Percy to make its own decisions about which way to go. Without waiting for the mission team on Earth to approve each step.
The stone’s long journey
The stone first appeared in an image captured by the Hazcam 341 Martian sol, more than 100 sol ago (the sol is 37 minutes longer than an Earth day). Since then, it can occasionally be seen in images taken by the camera. Scientists have counted that the stone has already covered 8.5 km with the rover. It is thus on its way to setting the record for the longest stowaway ride on a planet other than Earth.
However, he is not the first stone to attempt something similar. Eighteen years ago, a stone the size of a potato was stuck in one of the wheels of the Spirit rover. In February 2004. Spirit made a sharp turn that allowed it to shake out a chunk of rock. The rocks have also stuck to Curiosity several times. However, they always fell out on their own after a few days or weeks.
A riddle for Martian geologists
Perseverance is located in the Martian crater Jezero. It is an impact crater 47.5 km in diameter with an interesting geological history. In the distant past, rivers flowed into it, forming massive deltas. The crater was then a huge lake. There was also a period when volcanic lava flowed into it.
The rover is now in the so-called “Maaz” formation. This is part of the Jezero Crater, which scientists suspect was just formed from the solidified lava. On the way to it, Percy traversed areas of a former river delta. Now he is preparing to descend the steep slope of the crater. Scientists suspect that during the descent the stone, which has been traversing Mars with the rover for four months, will fall off its wheel.
However, this will introduce some confusion. If the rock actually falls out of the rover, it will be significantly different from the surrounding rocks.
“The sight of it may very well surprise future Martian geologists,” reads NASA’s blog devoted to Percy’s mission.
They may wonder for a long time: How did it get there? Is it the work of creatures from another planet?
Source: NASA
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