NASA's Perseverance Rover Failed First Mars Sampling Attempt

By Roxana Ion

Posted on August 8, 2021

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NASA’s Perseverance rover recently stumbled in its attempt to collect Mars rock samples on its first mission of this kind. The data sent to Earth by NASA’s Perseverance rover after its first effort indicates that no rock was collected during the initial sampling activity. What apparently went wrong with the rover is the fact that an essential tube was empty, while the equipment is likely fine.

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“While this is not the ‘hole-in-one’ we hoped for, there is always risk with breaking new ground,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. “I’m confident we have the right team working this, and we will persevere toward a solution to ensure future success.”

According to Perseverance project manager, Jennifer Trosper the team presumed the rock could have had an unexpected reaction through the coring process. Currently, scientists are still investigating what happened and may not have an answer for a few days. Once the team has a better understanding of what went wrong, it will be able to determine when to schedule the next sample collection attempt.