Far, very far from Earth, the Perseverance rover is still being run-in on its home planet, Mars.
Scientists want to make sure that the mechanics are well oiled and that the computing responds perfectly.
But this Friday will undoubtedly be a special day.
The NASA robot has successfully spun its wheels on the red planet for the very first time since it landed two weeks ago, moving a few meters, announces the US space agency.
READ ALSO>
Exploration of Mars: why Perseverance opens a new era
During this first trip made Thursday afternoon, and only intended to check the correct functioning of the system, the vehicle, equipped with six wheels, advanced 4 meters, then made a rotation on itself to the left, before to perform a rearward maneuver for about 2.5 meters.
By backing up, Perseverance was able to take a photo of its own wheel tracks on Martian soil, published by NASA.
"Our first drive went incredibly well. [...] You can see the wheel tracks that we left on Mars. I don't think I've ever been happier to see wheel tracks, and I've seen a lot of them . "
- @ NASAJPL's Anais Zarifian describes a milestone for @NASAPersevere.
pic.twitter.com/gewrGoLsRa
- NASA (@NASA) March 5, 2021
In total, the rover, which is the size of a large SUV, covered six and a half meters in 33 minutes.
"I don't think I've ever been so happy to see wheel marks," Anais Zarifian, engineer in charge of the rover's mobility at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he has been built.
"Our first trip went incredibly well, and it's a huge milestone for the mission."
Another slightly longer trip is planned this Friday, and possibly Saturday as well, if all goes well.
The vehicle will be able to travel 200 meters per Martian day (days very slightly longer than on Earth).
It travels five times faster than Curiosity, the other NASA rover still operating on Mars.
Morning essentials newsletter
A tour of the news to start the day
Subscribe to the newsletterAll newsletters
Perseverance landed on February 18 in Jezero Crater, which scientists believe was home to a deep lake 3.5 billion years ago.
The goal of the mission is to collect rock samples that will be brought back to Earth by a subsequent mission, in order to look for traces of ancient life on the red planet.
