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Tale of collection of first Martian land sample by NASA`s Perseverance rover- In pics
After failing the first attempt last month, NASA’s Mars rover Perseverance successfully collected its first sample of the Martian land. Here is a collection of pics to illustrate the journey of collecting the first sample of Martian land.
Reason to sample rocks
The rocks date to 3.5 billion years ago, making them some of the oldest in the entire solar system and will give scientists a glimpse at what conditions were like when the planets were only just forming. (Image Credit: NASA)
The target
The target for the sample collection attempt was a briefcase-size rock belonging to a ridgeline that is more than half-a-mile (900 meters) long and contains rock outcrops and boulders. (Image Credit: NASA)
Sampling system
Perseverance’s Sampling and Caching System uses a rotary-percussive drill and a hollow coring bit at the end of its 7-foot-long (2-meter-long) robotic arm to extract samples slightly thicker than a pencil. (Image Credit: NASA)
Mission accomplished
Data received late Sept. 1 from NASA’s Perseverance rover indicate the team has achieved its goal of successfully coring a Mars rock. This downlinked image shows an intact sample present in the tube after coring. (Image Credit: NASA)
What after this?
The Perseverance rover is just the first part of a long-term sample return mission. The rover will collect the rock samples, store them in tubes, and eventually deposit them on the surface of Mars. In a few years' time, scientists will send another craft to Mars, which will pick up these samples and return them to Earth. (Image Credit: NASA)