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NASA rover Perseverance lands on Mars to look for signs of ancient life

By Associated Press and Cindy Ellen Russell

Feb. 18, 2021

Hawaii PhotosVideo

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VIDEO BY NASA
Watch NASA video of the Perseverance rover landing on Mars.
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ASSOCIATED PRESS

A full-scale model of the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover is seen behind ropes at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Thursday, Feb. 18, in Pasadena, Calif. The six-wheeled vehicle will be visiting a planet long known as a deathtrap for incoming spacecraft.
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CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON/POOL VIA AP

French President Emmanuel Macron thumbs up during a viewing meeting of the landing of the NASA Perseverance Mars rover on the planet Mars at the French National Center for Space Studies (CNES) in Paris, Thursday, Feb. 18. A NASA rover streaked through the orange Martian sky and landed on the planet Thursday, accomplishing the riskiest step yet in an epic quest to bring back rocks that could answer whether life ever existed on Mars. The Perseverance rover carries the SuperCam instrument, built by a US-French team of several dozen engineers and scientists from CNES, CNRS and universities.
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CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON/POOL VIA AP

French President Emmanuel Macron attends a viewing meeting of the landing of the NASA Perseverance Mars rover on the planet Mars at the French National Center for Space Studies (CNES) in Paris, Thursday, Feb. 18. A NASA rover streaked through the orange Martian sky and landed on the planet Thursday, accomplishing the riskiest step yet in an epic quest to bring back rocks that could answer whether life ever existed on Mars. The Perseverance rover carries the SuperCam instrument, built by a US-French team of several dozen engineers and scientists from CNES, CNRS and universities.
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CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON, POOL VIA AP

French President Emmanuel Macron attends a viewing meeting of the landing of the NASA Perseverance Mars rover on the planet Mars at the French National Center for Space Studies (CNES) in Paris, Thursday, Feb. 18. A NASA rover streaked through the orange Martian sky and landed on the planet Thursday, accomplishing the riskiest step yet in an epic quest to bring back rocks that could answer whether life ever existed on Mars. The Perseverance rover carries the SuperCam instrument, built by a US-French team of several dozen engineers and scientists from CNES, CNRS and universities.
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CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON, POOL VIA AP

French President Emmanuel Macron attends a viewing meeting of the landing of the NASA Perseverance Mars rover on the planet Mars at the French National Center for Space Studies (CNES) in Paris, Thursday, Feb. 18. A NASA rover streaked through the orange Martian sky and landed on the planet Thursday, accomplishing the riskiest step yet in an epic quest to bring back rocks that could answer whether life ever existed on Mars. The Perseverance rover carries the SuperCam instrument, built by a US-French team of several dozen engineers and scientists from CNES, CNRS and universities.
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BILL INGALLS/NASA VIA AP

Members of the Perseverance Mars rover team study data on monitors in mission control, Thursday, Feb. 18, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. The landing of the six-wheeled vehicle would mark the third visit to Mars in just over a week. Two spacecraft from the United Arab Emirates and China swung into orbit around the planet on successive days last week.
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BILL INGALLS/NASA VIA AP

In this photo provided by NASA, members of NASA's Perseverance Mars rover team watch in mission control as the first images arrive moments after the spacecraft successfully touched down on Mars, Thursday, Feb. 18, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

University of Hawaii scientists gather to witness the landing of the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover via livestream while at Manoa campus on Thursday, Feb. 18. The team of researchers and graduate students are involved with two of the rover’s instruments which includes cameras, spectrometers and a laser to examine the soil and rocks of Mars for ancient life. Pictured is the NASA team clapping on live stream after the Perserverance landed successfully.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

University of Hawaii scientists gather to witness the landing of the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover via live stream while at Manoa campus on Thursday, Feb. 18. The team of researchers and graduate students are involved with two of the rover’s instruments which includes cameras, spectrometers and a laser to examine the soil and rocks of Mars for ancient life. Pictured is Sarah Fagents who is a researcher at the Hawaii Institute for Geophysics & Planetology and a Co-Investigator with the rover’s Mastcam-Z, a mast mounted camera system, which serves as the “eyes” for the Perserverance.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

University of Hawaii scientists gathered to witness the landing of the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover via live stream while at Manoa campus on Thursday, Feb. 18. The team of researchers and graduate students are involved with two of the rover’s instruments which includes cameras, spectrometers and a laser to examine the soil and rocks of Mars for ancient life. Pictured is the team clapping after the Perserverance landed successfully.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

University of Hawaii scientists gather to witness the landing of the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover via live stream while at Manoa campus on Thursday, Feb. 18. The team of researchers and graduate students are involved with two of the rover’s instruments which includes cameras, spectrometers and a laser to examine the soil and rocks of Mars for ancient life. Pictured reacting to the successful landing in the foreground is Sarah Fagents who is a researcher at the Hawaii Institute for Geophysics & Planetology and a Co-Investigator with the rover’s Mastcam-Z, a mast mounted camera system, which serves as the “eyes” for the Perserverance.
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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARADVERTISER.COM

University of Hawaii scientists gather to witness the landing of the Mars 2020 Perservance Rover via livestream while at Manoa campus on Feb. 18, 2021. The team of researchers and graduate students are involved with two of the rover’s instruments which includes cameras, spectrometers and a laser to examine the soil and rocks of Mars for ancient life. Pictured documenting the historic landing is research fellow Anezina Solomonidou who works at the CALTECH/Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
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ASSOCIATED PRESS

Boxes of Krispy Kreme donuts resembling the rover's destination Mars, named the "Mars Doughnut," arrive for the landing the Mars 2020 Perseverance at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Thursday, Feb. 18, in Pasadena, Calif. A NASA rover is hurtling toward a landing on Mars in the riskiest step yet in an epic quest to bring back rocks that could answer whether life ever existed on the red planet. The six-wheeled vehicle, called Perseverance, will be visiting a planet long known as a deathtrap for incoming spacecraft. Ground controllers will be watching nervously Thursday afternoon as the rover makes its descent.
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ASSOCIATED PRESS

A Krispy Kreme donut resembling the rover's destination Mars, named the "Mars Doughnut," is shown for the landing the Mars 2020 Perseverance at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Thursday, Feb. 18, in Pasadena, Calif. A NASA rover is hurtling toward a landing on Mars in the riskiest step yet in an epic quest to bring back rocks that could answer whether life ever existed on the red planet. The six-wheeled vehicle, called Perseverance, will be visiting a planet long known as a deathtrap for incoming spacecraft. Ground controllers will be watching nervously Thursday afternoon as the rover makes its descent.
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ASSOCIATED PRESS

Rob Manning, Chief Engineer at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory shows his Mars Mission Rover themed socks as he arrives for the landing the Mars 2020 Perseverance at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Thursday, Feb. 18, in Pasadena, Calif. A NASA rover is hurtling toward a landing on Mars in the riskiest step yet in an epic quest to bring back rocks that could answer whether life ever existed on the red planet. The six-wheeled vehicle, called Perseverance, will be visiting a planet long known as a deathtrap for incoming spacecraft. Ground controllers will be watching nervously Thursday afternoon as the rover makes its descent.
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YUI MOK/PA VIA AP

Images from Nasa are streamed live showing the landing of NASA's Perseverance on Mars, shown on Piccadilly Lights in central London, Thursday Feb. 18. The Mars rover landing mission begins it's search for traces of life after the successful landing, to explore and collect samples for future return to Earth.
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NASA/JPL-CALTECH VIA AP

In this illustration made available by NASA, the Perseverance rover casts off its spacecraft's cruise stage, minutes before entering the Martian atmosphere.
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NASA/JPL-CALTECH VIA AP

In this illustration made available by NASA, The aeroshell containing the Perseverance rover guides itself towards the Martian surface as it descends through the atmosphere.
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NASA/JPL-CALTECH VIA AP

In this illustration made available by NASA, the Perseverance rover deploys a supersonic parachute from its aeroshell as it slows down before landing on the surface of Mars.
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NASA/JPL-CALTECH VIA AP

In this illustration made available by NASA, the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover studies a Mars rock outrcrop.
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BILL INGALLS/NASA VIA AP

In this photo provided by NASA, members of NASA's Perseverance rover team react in mission control after receiving confirmation the spacecraft successfully touched down on Mars, Thursday, Feb. 18, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. The landing of the six-wheeled vehicle marks the third visit to Mars in just over a week. Two spacecraft from the United Arab Emirates and China swung into orbit around the planet on successive days last week.
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NASA VIA AP

This photo made available by NASA shows the first image sent by the Perseverance rover showing the surface of Mars, just after landing in the Jezero crater, on Thursday, Feb. 18.
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NASA VIA AP

This photo made available by NASA shows the second image sent by the Perseverance rover showing the surface of Mars, just after landing in the Jezero crater, on Thursday, Feb. 18.

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