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NASA's Perseverance rover sets record for distance driven on another world
NASA's Perseverance rover logged 28.10 miles on Mars on Oct. 11, passing the 28.06-mile mark set by the Opportunity rover, which took nearly 15 years to cover that distance [1][2][3].
- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory is now reporting this
- New headline Was: “NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover just shattered the all-time off-world driving record”
- Our desk filed its story
NASA's Perseverance rover has driven farther on another world than any vehicle before it, reaching 28.10 miles (45.22 kilometers) on its odometer on Oct. 11, NASA said1,2,3. That passed the 28.06 miles (45.16 kilometers) logged by NASA's Opportunity rover, which explored Mars from 2004 to 20181,2,3.
Opportunity needed nearly 15 years to reach its total; Perseverance did it in about five and a half years, on its 2,006th Martian day, or sol1,2,3. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory announced the milestone on Oct. 121.
NASA and both outlets credit the rover's autonomous navigation system, AutoNav, which photographs the ground as the rover moves, builds a 3D map of hazards and picks a route between targets chosen by mission controllers1,2,3. AutoNav has assessed the terrain for more than 90% of Perseverance's driving, compared with about 5% for Opportunity and Spirit1,2,3. The rover can cover as much as 1,351 feet (412 meters) in one sol1,2,3.
"The original mission called for no more than 12.4 miles of driving," said Steven Lee, project manager for the Curiosity and Perseverance rovers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in NASA's announcement1,2,3. Lee said all of the rover's mobility systems were fully working1.
The record came as Perseverance traveled through an area called Lac de Charmes, beyond the western rim of Jezero Crater, toward a site called Idubi, where scientists hope to find signs of ancient hydrothermal systems1,2,3. Colombia One reported that the rover had collected 29 rock and regolith samples by the time it set the record3.
NASA has approved a mission extension that keeps Perseverance exploring the crater rim through about the end of 20281,2. Curiosity, which landed in Gale Crater in 2012 and is still driving, has logged more than 23.65 miles (38.07 kilometers)2.
Sources
How it’s being reported
3 versions from 2 sourcesNASA’s Perseverance Sets Off-World Record for Total Distance Driven
The odometer figures, the self-driving system and the history of NASA's Mars rovers.
NASA's own Oct. 12 announcement of the record, with the AutoNav details and the project manager's comments.
NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover just shattered the all-time off-world driving record
Leads with the record and credits the rover's AutoNav self-driving system.
Carries NASA's account of the record, the rover's self-driving system and the history of Mars rovers.
NASA’s Perseverance Rover Breaks Mars Driving Record in 5 1/2 Years
Pairs the record with the mission's search for signs of ancient life.
Reports the record and the rover's science goals, with a note on a Colombian-born JPL engineer.