For years, humanity has dreamed of venturing out past the bounds of our planet. The idea that we may, one day, be able to explore the stars was something that was fascinating. Right now, we are living at the beginning stages of this dream. Missions to the International Space Station, the Moon, and even Mars are all milestones to one day sending humans across lightyears of space. But before we can explore the universe we first need to understand where we are now. 

One planet that has captured the minds and imagination of scientists all over the world is Mars. Its blood red sands and tall ridges spark curiosity, and its dried markings could even signify the existence of water long ago – one of the building block of life as we know it. Throughout history there have been about 26 successful missions to the Red Planet, with the newest and most advanced one set to launch in July of this year. 

The Perseverance rover will land in a dry river delta in the Jezero crater with hopes of uncovering some of the mysteries of the planet. The rover will search for dead organic matter that could signal the existence of life long ago as well as collect samples for analysis in high tech labs here on Earth. Along with this mission, there will also be a small helicopter that will scout out the Martian surface from the air.

The Perseverance rover will explore Mars not just for the scientists who created it, but for all of humanity. In order to take a little bit of its home with it, the rover was given small silicon chips placed on a plate in which the names of more than 10.9 million people are etched. The plate itself  has a message encrypted within it. Depicted on the surface is a picture of the Sun whose rays connect Earth to Mars, a sign of connecting the two worlds. The rays also hold a very special message: Inscribed in morse code, the words “Explore As One” as written on the surface.

This mission is so much more than just another rover on Mars. This mission is a sign that exploration of the Red Planet is conducted by all of humankind. Every success and failure that comes with this mission will be endured by all of us, because in essence, this is our mission: To persevere.

Resources

SPACE.COM, NASA