news hardware Mission to Mars: NASA encounters a major problem
After a dangerous mission that lasted almost 4 years, NASA’s InSight mission has to cease its activities. And for good reason, extreme weather conditions have jeopardized certain functions of the probe, some of which are vital.
NASA doesn’t always have all the solutions…
The first thing we could of course tell ourselves: NASA could and should have foreseen this error. At least if that’s the case. As a matter of fact, The harsh climatic conditions of certain regions of the Red Planet have significantly weakened the robot’s systems.
cherry on the cake, Martian dust has collected on the probe’s solar panels, which power the probewhich is its main source of energy.
After 4 years of mission, NASA must put an end to its immense epic that will forever mark history. The Perseverance rover, on the other hand, lives up to its name and will continue to provide data to scientists because it is equipped with a thermoelectric generator that is in no way dependent on the sun.
For more than a month, the rover has been approaching the delta, where researchers believe it may find biosignatures. That means evidence, if only hints, of potential life on Mars.
On this journey, the Perseverance rover was accompanied by Ingenuity, a small helicopter that serves as a scout in these wild lands.
The pockets of red sand and steep slopes of planet Mars slowed the mission, but all is well that ends well for the InSight probe, which brought its share of data.
A data-rich Mars mission
In 4 years mission, the InSight probe has provided scientists with valuable data. Until then, NASA plans to have the Perseverance rover climb Rocky Top, a slope upstream of the delta where the first samples were taken.
According to NASA, This area would be the most suitable for a sample, as it may have preserved certain organic molecules essential to determining past life on the Red Planet.
The home stretch has been drawn for the small probe, which is entering its last phase of life. But the data collected was more than surprising.
Before the mission launched, scientists suspected that Lezero Crater was an ancient dry lake. Well, imagine that NASA’s little technological gem managed to prove it! Analyzing the environment, it was found that the sedimentation of certain rock faces was undoubtedly riddled with long liquid rivers and even violent floods that would have completely changed the relief of the red planet.
If the final leg goes as planned, despite the probe’s nearly dead battery, scientists could find significant evidence of life on Mars thanks to the two rovers Opportunity and Perseverance still circling the planet. A historic discovery that would change our view of the universe forever.
