NASA Mars 2020 Perseverance by Adam Jesionkiewicz
The Red Planet has been stimulating the imagination of scientists and dreamers about space exploration for years. However, before a human is able to put a foot on it, we must carefully examine this world, millions of kilometers away.
To achieve this, you need consistency and persistence in overcoming subsequent engineering challenges. The word Perseverance means tenacity. The mission itself is the outstanding work of human intelligence and technology that has been designed to learn more about Mars and perhaps find evidence of life in the planet’s distant past. The Mars 2020 project (Perseverance and Ingenuity rover) is already hailed as a milestone in space exploration by humanity.
To celebrate the Perseverance landing on Mars (February 18, 2021) and keep it in mind, we’ve designed a unique poster featuring mission highlights along with an EDL (Entry, Descent, and Landing) plan. It is also an expression of our appreciation for the great genius of all scientists who are working on this revolutionary project. – Adam Jesionkiewicz
NASA Mars 2020 – which is the official name of this scientific mission, was created as a twin platform to the Curiosity rover, which has been studying the surface of the red planet since 2012. Its main goal is to expand our understanding of how future explorers will be able to use this planet’s resources to build a self-sustaining colony on Mars.
One of the main tasks of the Perseverance rover is to understand how to deal with Martian dust, which is fine enough to destroy even the most secure devices, and how to optimally use the carbon dioxide in the Martian atmosphere to produce oxygen.
Certainly, one of the mission’s most imaginative goals is the search for biosignatures, that is, any signs of possible past life of microbes. The rover will explore the bottom and the rocks of Jezero Crater, which are known to retain such signatures for a very long time.
Mobile Martian Laboratory (MSL)
The Perseverance rover has 7 scientific instruments on board, each with its own specialized task. Those are:
- Mastcam-Z – the advanced camera system will be used to create panoramic images of the Mars surface and allow for the possibility of mineralogical analysis.
- SuperCam – it will perform precise analyses of the chemical and mineral composition of rocks.
- Planetary Instrument for X-ray Litho Chemistry (PIXL) – X-ray fluorescence spectrometer, which will be used to perform surface elemental analyses.
- SHERLOC – a spectrometer for the detection of organic compounds.
- The Mars Oxygen ISRU Experiment (MOXIE) – an experiment to test the technology for obtaining oxygen from the Martian atmosphere.
- Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) – set of meteorological sensors.
- The Radar Imager for Mars’ Subsurface Experiment (RIMFAX) – radar for penetrating the geological structures of Mars.
Another guest is traveling to Mars on board the rover. It is the Martian Ingenuity drone, which will make its first historic flight in a non-Earth atmosphere (to think that only 118 years have passed since the Wright brothers’ flight). The purpose of the nearly 2 kg “scout,” is to test the technology and help plan the best route for the rover.
Perfect for space enthusiasts, educators, and art collectors, this poster is a striking reminder of human ingenuity and the pioneering spirit that drives interplanetary exploration.
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