The Mars Perseverance rover group at NASA discovered an sudden piece of extraterrestrial trash because it roamed the Crimson Planet not too long ago. However the litter isn’t as “alien” as one would possibly assume.
When one thing is discovered on Mars that’s not a part of its pure surroundings, the primary inclination is to be very excited. However because the previous has taught us, it greater than seemingly isn’t as “alien” as we’d hope. An instance was when NASA’s Mars Ingenuity Helicopter discovered remnants of Perseverance’s backshell and parachute again in April of this yr. Now, Perseverance has noticed one other piece of litter on Mars. Whereas it might be “alien” in nature to Mars, it’s not to the rover’s group again right here on Earth.
The Twitter account for NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover posted a tweet yesterday sharing a picture captured by the rover. It begins the tweet by stating, “My group has noticed one thing sudden,” however then explains that the item in query is a chunk of thermal blanket from when the rover made its descent onto the planet again in 2021.
In a follow-up tweet the group mentioned the “shiny little bit of foil” was a part of the thermal blanket used to regulate temperatures. Whereas it might be apparent as to what the item is, the group is much less sure about which a part of the spacecraft it originated from and the way it arrived at its present location. The descent stage crashed 2 km away, and the group is not positive if the piece discovered its manner there through the descent course of, or was carried there by wind afterward.
In an announcement to CNET, NASA JPL spokesperson Andrew Good remarked, “Much less particular is which a part of the spacecraft it got here from – the group thinks the descent stage is an effective chance – or how precisely it acquired right here.”
The thermal blanket that attributed to the alien trash helped to control the temperatures skilled through the thrilling entry, descent and touchdown course of. That is also called the “seven minutes of terror.” The descent tools was designed to ship the rover safely to the floor after which transfer away as a way to shield the car and its touchdown website.
High Picture Credit score: NASA/JPL
