OER Project Exchange… We’re going to Mars with Megan McGroarty and the Arizona State University Mars 2020 Mastcam-Z Team // April 12 - 14, 2021

My students are super excited about this amazing opportunity.  Here are some of the questions they have asked so far:

1. How long did it take to build Perseverance, and did you run into any major problems in the building process?
2. Has there been any evidence that shows that there might be life on Mars, or that life once existed on Mars?
3. How much does Perseverance weigh, and was this the maximum amount that could be placed on the rocket that sent Perseverance into space?
4. How will the soil samples get back to Earth, and what specifically are you looking for in these samples?
5. How did you prep the cameras for the space flight and for touching down on Mars?
6. If a camera were to fail, are there any ways for fixing it from Earth?
7. Will Perseverance come back to Earth?
8. What was the most difficult part of developing the camera system for Perseverance?
9. How many prototypes did you go through in the creation of Perseverance?
10. Was there anything that did not make it onto Perseverance that you would have liked to have seen?  If so, what was it?
11. In terms of cost, what percentage of the total budget was spent on the cameras?
12. Besides the cameras not turning on, what was your biggest fear for this mission?
13. From the time the cameras snap a picture, how long does it take for the image to reach Earth?
14. Can you explain how the images get from Mars to Earth?
15. In your opinion, how close are we to putting a person or persons on Mars?

Hi Zachary,

Most questions are answered below.  answered by the Mastcam-Z Team and Megan McGroarty and by me:-)

1. How long did it take to build Perseverance, and did you run into any major problems in the building process?

From the ASU Mastcam-Z Team:

From selection as part of the Mars 2020 mission (July 31,2014) to design, fabrication, assembly, delivery and mounting on the rover, took about five years. If you add in the time to write the instrument proposal, that would be about six years.

The Mastcam-Z didn’t run into any major problems, but we did encounter several small problems during the development and assembly of the camera system. Some components had failures that caused delays, since we had to analyze the failures and decide on a corrective action. These issues were often related to problems with fabrication quality control, or materials quality control.

2. Has there been any evidence that shows that there might be life on Mars, or that life once existed on Mars?

Meg Hufford's response:

Earth and Mars are the most similar of the eight planets in our Solar System. There are also extreme differences.

"Follow the water" is a strategy NASA uses when looking for signs of life on Mars. Early missions mapped the surface from orbit and viewed images showing evidence of ancient water flows. [Mars Global Surveyor (1997-2007), Mars Odyssey (2001- present), Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (2005-present)] More recent missions with rovers used improved technology and tools; including cameras, on the surface to seek water through  analysis of soil samples.[(Mars Exploration Rovers (2003-2019), Curiosity (2012-present), Perseverance (2020 - NOW!) 

3. How much does Perseverance weigh, and was this the maximum amount that could be placed on the rocket that sent Perseverance into space?

Meg Hufford's response:

The Perseverance rover weighs 2,260 pounds (1,025 kilograms), less than a compact car. Perseverance launched on an Atlas V-541 rocket from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. The Atlas V is one of the largest rockets available for interplanetary flight and Ican handle more weight

4. How will the soil samples get back to Earth, and what specifically are you looking for in these samples?

Megan’s response:

In a process referred to as “sample caching,” the rover will collect samples with its drill from Martian rocks and soil to then store the sample cores in tubes on the surface of Mars. Those drop-off points are then mapped, to make them easier to find and go back to later on. Eventually, there is the future possibility of that sample being picked up by a future mission to the red planet. From these collected samples, which would be the first to be collected from another planet, scientists would be able to learn more about Mars and the possibilities of life on it. For more information on sample collection:

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/a-martian-roundtrip-nasas-perseverance-rover-sample-tubes 

5. How did you prep the cameras for the space flight and for touching down on Mars?

Meg Hufford's response:

Past experience and: testing, testing, testing! Cameras must survive the intense shock of launch from Earth and entry, descent and landing on Mars. NASA uses thermal vacuum chambers on Earth to duplicate conditions and properties that all instruments will encounter including intense vibration and extreme temperature flux. Getting better with each mission!

6. If a camera were to fail, are there any ways for fixing it from Earth?

From Mastcam-Z Team:

Possible failure is one of the reasons for installing two, nearly identical cameras as part of Mastcam-Z. There is no possible way to correct mechanical or physical problems with cameras. Issues that are software based can be updated by patching the software onboard the camera digital electronics assembly (DEA).

7. Will Perseverance come back to Earth?

No. Perseverance is not equipped for safe return to Earth. Don't be sad. Part of the Mars 2020 mission is to collect soil samples for future robotic “visitors” to collect the sealed sample tubes and return them to Earth for more intense analysis in labs with instruments that cannot go to Mars. Perseverance will help future missions continue to explore!

9. How many prototypes did you go through in the creation of Perseverance?

From Mastcam-Z Team:

As part of the development process, the Mastcam-Z team delivered both an engineering qualification model (EQM) and as well as a testbed unit (TBU), in addition to the two flight cameras. The design of Mastcam-Z was based on the very successful Mastcam camera system onboard the Mars Science Laboratory (better known as the Curiosity rover), with the addition of zoom capabilities.

10. Was there anything that did not make it onto Perseverance that you would have liked to have seen?  If so, what was it?

Meg Hufford's response:

Thank you for such a great question! The making of a NASA mission is a complex process. Perseverance has been equipped to do the tasks of this mission, which is one of several science objectives including sample caching and sample return to Earth.

11. In terms of cost, what percentage of the total budget was spent on the cameras?

From Megan McGroarty:

To build and launch the Perseverance rover, it cost approximately $2.4 billion, with another about $300 million for landing and operating the rover on the Martian surface. A lot goes into building and launching a rover suitable for another planet!

12. Besides the cameras not turning on, what was your biggest fear for this mission?

From Mastcam-Z Team:

The other biggest fear is the rover not turning on after the transition from cruise software to surface software! Luckily we are now past that point in the mission, and the rover (and all its instruments) are working flawlessly.

13. From the time the cameras snap a picture, how long does it take for the image to reach Earth?

Data received from the Perseverance rover takes eight  Mastcam-Z camera as individual images take 3-5 minutes to process into jpg format and are posted on the web in almost real-time. It takes much longer to process panoramic images.

14. Can you explain how the images get from Mars to Earth?

Megan’s Response:

Data from the three antennas on the rover gets sent back to Earth to be received by the Deep Space Network (DSN). The DSN is an international network of antennas (in the desert in California, US; near Madrid, Spain; and near Canberra, Australia) placed in locations 120 degrees apart from each other on the Earth. This is so scientists can receive data from places beyond Earth consistently, like data (and pictures) from NASA’s Perseverance Rover. As for how long it takes, the data itself may take 5 to 20 minutes to reach Earth, but things such as pictures may take longer to piece together and process. https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/spacecraft/rover/communications/ 

https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/mission/communications/

15. In your opinion, how close are we to putting a person or persons on Mars?

Megan’s response:

Personally, I feel we are getting closer to putting a person on Mars, but closer yet even to sending someone to the Moon. In fact, the first crewed mission since the Apollo Missions (which ended in 1972) is scheduled to launch in 2024! This will be one of the first of many planned Artemis missions. One of the goals of Artemis is to establish sustainable exploration by the end of the decade, so we could go further into space to places such as Mars. For more information on the Artemis missions: https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis/

Hi Zachary,

Most questions are answered below.  answered by the Mastcam-Z Team and Megan McGroarty and by me:-)

1. How long did it take to build Perseverance, and did you run into any major problems in the building process?

From the ASU Mastcam-Z Team:

From selection as part of the Mars 2020 mission (July 31,2014) to design, fabrication, assembly, delivery and mounting on the rover, took about five years. If you add in the time to write the instrument proposal, that would be about six years.

The Mastcam-Z didn’t run into any major problems, but we did encounter several small problems during the development and assembly of the camera system. Some components had failures that caused delays, since we had to analyze the failures and decide on a corrective action. These issues were often related to problems with fabrication quality control, or materials quality control.

2. Has there been any evidence that shows that there might be life on Mars, or that life once existed on Mars?

Meg Hufford's response:

Earth and Mars are the most similar of the eight planets in our Solar System. There are also extreme differences.

"Follow the water" is a strategy NASA uses when looking for signs of life on Mars. Early missions mapped the surface from orbit and viewed images showing evidence of ancient water flows. [Mars Global Surveyor (1997-2007), Mars Odyssey (2001- present), Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (2005-present)] More recent missions with rovers used improved technology and tools; including cameras, on the surface to seek water through  analysis of soil samples.[(Mars Exploration Rovers (2003-2019), Curiosity (2012-present), Perseverance (2020 - NOW!) 

3. How much does Perseverance weigh, and was this the maximum amount that could be placed on the rocket that sent Perseverance into space?

Meg Hufford's response:

The Perseverance rover weighs 2,260 pounds (1,025 kilograms), less than a compact car. Perseverance launched on an Atlas V-541 rocket from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. The Atlas V is one of the largest rockets available for interplanetary flight and Ican handle more weight

4. How will the soil samples get back to Earth, and what specifically are you looking for in these samples?

Megan’s response:

In a process referred to as “sample caching,” the rover will collect samples with its drill from Martian rocks and soil to then store the sample cores in tubes on the surface of Mars. Those drop-off points are then mapped, to make them easier to find and go back to later on. Eventually, there is the future possibility of that sample being picked up by a future mission to the red planet. From these collected samples, which would be the first to be collected from another planet, scientists would be able to learn more about Mars and the possibilities of life on it. For more information on sample collection:

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/a-martian-roundtrip-nasas-perseverance-rover-sample-tubes 

5. How did you prep the cameras for the space flight and for touching down on Mars?

Meg Hufford's response:

Past experience and: testing, testing, testing! Cameras must survive the intense shock of launch from Earth and entry, descent and landing on Mars. NASA uses thermal vacuum chambers on Earth to duplicate conditions and properties that all instruments will encounter including intense vibration and extreme temperature flux. Getting better with each mission!

6. If a camera were to fail, are there any ways for fixing it from Earth?

From Mastcam-Z Team:

Possible failure is one of the reasons for installing two, nearly identical cameras as part of Mastcam-Z. There is no possible way to correct mechanical or physical problems with cameras. Issues that are software based can be updated by patching the software onboard the camera digital electronics assembly (DEA).

7. Will Perseverance come back to Earth?

No. Perseverance is not equipped for safe return to Earth. Don't be sad. Part of the Mars 2020 mission is to collect soil samples for future robotic “visitors” to collect the sealed sample tubes and return them to Earth for more intense analysis in labs with instruments that cannot go to Mars. Perseverance will help future missions continue to explore!

9. How many prototypes did you go through in the creation of Perseverance?

From Mastcam-Z Team:

As part of the development process, the Mastcam-Z team delivered both an engineering qualification model (EQM) and as well as a testbed unit (TBU), in addition to the two flight cameras. The design of Mastcam-Z was based on the very successful Mastcam camera system onboard the Mars Science Laboratory (better known as the Curiosity rover), with the addition of zoom capabilities.

10. Was there anything that did not make it onto Perseverance that you would have liked to have seen?  If so, what was it?

Meg Hufford's response:

Thank you for such a great question! The making of a NASA mission is a complex process. Perseverance has been equipped to do the tasks of this mission, which is one of several science objectives including sample caching and sample return to Earth.

11. In terms of cost, what percentage of the total budget was spent on the cameras?

From Megan McGroarty:

To build and launch the Perseverance rover, it cost approximately $2.4 billion, with another about $300 million for landing and operating the rover on the Martian surface. A lot goes into building and launching a rover suitable for another planet!

12. Besides the cameras not turning on, what was your biggest fear for this mission?

From Mastcam-Z Team:

The other biggest fear is the rover not turning on after the transition from cruise software to surface software! Luckily we are now past that point in the mission, and the rover (and all its instruments) are working flawlessly.

13. From the time the cameras snap a picture, how long does it take for the image to reach Earth?

Data received from the Perseverance rover takes eight  Mastcam-Z camera as individual images take 3-5 minutes to process into jpg format and are posted on the web in almost real-time. It takes much longer to process panoramic images.

14. Can you explain how the images get from Mars to Earth?

Megan’s Response:

Data from the three antennas on the rover gets sent back to Earth to be received by the Deep Space Network (DSN). The DSN is an international network of antennas (in the desert in California, US; near Madrid, Spain; and near Canberra, Australia) placed in locations 120 degrees apart from each other on the Earth. This is so scientists can receive data from places beyond Earth consistently, like data (and pictures) from NASA’s Perseverance Rover. As for how long it takes, the data itself may take 5 to 20 minutes to reach Earth, but things such as pictures may take longer to piece together and process. https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/spacecraft/rover/communications/ 

https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/mission/communications/

15. In your opinion, how close are we to putting a person or persons on Mars?

Megan’s response:

Personally, I feel we are getting closer to putting a person on Mars, but closer yet even to sending someone to the Moon. In fact, the first crewed mission since the Apollo Missions (which ended in 1972) is scheduled to launch in 2024! This will be one of the first of many planned Artemis missions. One of the goals of Artemis is to establish sustainable exploration by the end of the decade, so we could go further into space to places such as Mars. For more information on the Artemis missions: https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis/

Thank you so much for your responses.  I can't wait to get these out to our students, they are going to be so excited!!