Perseverance Mars rover sets new driving record on surface of another world - CBS News
NASA's Perseverance rover has set a new distance record for driving on Mars, covering 28.1 miles since its 2021 landing. The rover utilizes autonomous navigation technology to map terrain and avoid hazards while searching for signs of ancient microbial life.
Why it matters
This milestone demonstrates the success of autonomous robotics in space exploration and advances our understanding of Martian geology.
NASA's Perseverance rover set an otherworldly driving record this week, traveling the farthest of any vehicle ever on the surface of another planet. The space agency said its rover, which has been exploring Mars since 2021, had driven 28.1 miles as of Sunday, exceeding the previous record set by NASA's Opportunity rover, which drove 28.06 miles during its 15-year exploration of the red planet, from 2004 to 2018. Perseverance reached the milestone distance while traveling along the western rim of of Mars' Jezero Crater, where the rover has been tasked with investigating what scientists believe may be some of the oldest terrain in the solar system. They hope Perseverance will find traces of ancient hydrothermal systems — underground networks that heat water — in that area. The rover has made important discoveries at the Jezero Crater since first landing on Mars in February 2021.
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4 other newsrooms covered this event. We read each version separately.
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