Previous rock encounters have spelled potential trouble for NASA rovers. In its time on the wheel it travelled about 10 km across the surface of the planet. The rock posed no threat to the rover’s navigation or science mission, but it did show up in periodic images, and hung on despite scientists on Earth instructing the rover to try to shake it. Gwénaël Caravaca 🔴 ⛏ April 20, 2023Īnd in a bittersweet development, NASA’s Perseverance rover has lost its “pet rock,” a small stone that became lodged in the vehicle’s front left wheel more than a year ago. The rover had explored the Martian surface for 358 days and travelled almost two km, Zhang said, far exceeding its original mission time-span of three months.įarewell 'Rock Friend' 🫂 We found out in latest Hazcam we have lost our pet rock in the front left wheel of It spent 427 Sols with us (more than an Earth year!), and traveled about 10 km since Sol 341😳 Farewell Rock Friend, you will be missed! /C0WywiwicP- Dr. A camera on board a NASA probe orbiting Mars showed Zhurong had not moved since at least September. Zhurong, named after a mythical Chinese god of fire, was expected to have woken up in December after entering a planned sleep mode in May 2022 as falling solar radiation with the advent of winter cut its power generation. The comments broke months of silence about the status of the 240-kg vehicle, which was tasked with studying the planet’s surface soil and atmosphere after landing in May of 2021. “We are monitoring it every day and believe it has not woken up because the sunlight has not yet reached the minimum level for power generation.” “We have not had any communication from the rover since it entered hibernation” last May, said Zhang Rongqiao, chief designer of the nation’s Mars exploration program. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Manage Print Subscription / Tax Receipt.

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