First geologist due to land on Mars today
We are all super excited today awaiting the landing of the Rover Perseverance in the Jerezo Crater on Mars tonight.
Perseverance will be the first full-fledged six-wheeled geologist on Mars. ‘Persie’ is already the furthest travelled geologist of all times and will set wheels on Marsian soil in the Jerezo Crater which once was flooded with water. Jerezo crater still is showing signs of its wet past today that every geologist will recognise immediately in form of a beautiful meandering river channel and fluvial delta entering the crater
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| Remains of an ancient delta in Mars' Jezero Crater. Credit ESA/DLR/FU-Berlin. (full image here) |
Before ‘Persie’ can start with the job to search for fossil microbial life in the Jerezo Crater, the rover must safely arrive on the ground slowing down from speeds of 20000 km/hour to zero tonight during critical phases of atmospheric braking, parashooting, retro thruster firing and final skycrane descend to the Mars surface.
Watch the live stream of the rover landing tonight starting at 17.30pm GMT
Exciting job opportunities ahead for ‘outward-looking’ geoscience students, Space Geologist.
All geologists will keep fingers crossed throughout the so-called ‘Seven Minutes of Terror’ during the rover descend. Good luck and Good work, Perserverance.
Jürgen Adam, RHUL, 18 February 2021
