[▲ Perseverance coring bit (center) taken after excavation on September 1. A sample can be seen in the tube set inside the coring bit (Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASU / MSSS)]
Mankind will get it in the not too distant futureMartian rock sampleHowever, it may have finally been collected.On September 2, local time, NASA announced a rover for the Mars exploration mission “Mars 2020.”“Perseverance”according toSecond rock samplingRevealed that was carried out.
The opening image is used for rock excavationCoring bitWas taken after excavation.Perseverance zoom compatible camera for shooting「Mastcam-Z」Was used.The ring-shaped object with four protrusions in the center is the tip of the tubular coring bit, and inside it is about 15 cm long to hold the sample.Tube-shaped storage containerIs set.In the imageThe collected sample is in the containerThe situation is clearly captured.
■ Temporarily check the collected sample, and it is possible that it entered the back of the container by the subsequent operation.
[▲ Image of the coring bit at the tip of the robot arm taken from an oblique angle (Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASU)]
I wish I could say that I succeeded in collecting the sample, but as of noon on September 3, Japan time.The result is uncertain..The operations team「Rochette」After polishing a part of the surface of the rock called (Rochette, described later) and analyzing the inside,Sampling by Perseverance on September 1, 2021 local time(See the related article below for the flow of sampling).
Related: NASA Mars rover “Perseverance” arrives at the second sampling point and photographs candidate rocks
As mentioned aboveIn the image taken immediately after the collection, the sample is inside the container.The situation has been confirmed,In the image taken after this, the sample inside the container is not visible...This is to screen out the residue from the edge of the opening of the storage containerOperation to vibrate the coring bitIt was taken after performing (vibration that lasts for 1 second for a total of 5 times).The sample slipped into the back of the tubular container due to vibrationIt is said that it may have disappeared because of this.In the image taken after the vibration of the coring bitThe inside of the storage container is dark and cannot be seen all the wayTherefore, the status of the sample could not be confirmed.
According to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which operates Perseverance,Operations team is confident that the sample remains inside the containerHowever, by making good use of sunlight or taking a new image after sunset, which is not affected by sunlight,Reconfirm the inside of the container just in caseIt is planned to do. The new image will be sent to Earth early in the morning of September 4, local time.
Even if the sample cannot be confirmed by taking additional images, the Adaptive Caching Assembly (mounted on the body of ACA, Perseverance), which handles the delivery of storage containers with the robot arm and sealing work, etc.Measure the volume of the sample and take an image when the container is sealed and stored.Therefore, there is still an opportunity to check the status of the sample.
[▲ Image taken after the vibration of the coring bit. The sample that was visible in the image at the beginning can no longer be confirmed (Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASU / MSSS)]
■ In the previous attempt, the rock broke and I could not take a sample.
The main purpose of Mars 2020 isTraces of microorganisms that may have been present on MarsNASA is working with the European Space Agency (ESA)Sample return mission from MarsAnd PerseveranceTake a sample of Mars to be transported to Earth for the first time in the history of Mars explorationIt also plays an important role. The tube containing the sample will be placed on the surface of the Jezero Crater, where Perseverance has landed, in anticipation of being picked up by a recovery rover to be sent in the future.
Storage container in PerseveranceEquipped with 43Has been done, of whichCollect samples using about 30Is planned.The first rock sampling was attempted on August 6, 2021 local time, at this time.The rock has shattered into small piecesCould not fit in the container because of.
Related: NASA Mars rover “Perseverance” may have broken rocks in the first sampling
[▲ Rochette, a rock photographed after sampling by Perseverance. A drilling hole with a coring bit can be seen in the center (Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech)]
Perseverance then moved northwest, on August 26th.Rock “Rochette” which was a candidate for the second samplingThe image of was released. This rock is in the corner of a small ridge,Has endured long-term wind erosion (wind erosion)Is believed to be.There was no problem with the operation of Perseverance itself in the first sampling.And the Rochette who has endured the wind erosionHighly likely to withstand excavationTherefore, the success of the collection was expected this time.
If the Rochette was successfully sampled, this rock sample is the first of about 30 planned collections, and the Perseverance sampling journey will continue.The storage container containing the sample will be temporarily stored at the bottom of the Perseverance body, but will be placed on the surface of the Jezero Crater at a later date and will be launched in the future.Rover for recoveryWill be picked up by.The collected storage containersLaunched after being transferred to a small rocketBe,Return to Earth using a return spacecraftIt’s a schedule. If the plan goes well,Mankind gets a sample of the surface of Mars in 2031, ten years laterIt will be.
[▲ One of the sample tubes that is checked before mounting on Perseverance. Taken in JPL’s clean room (Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech)]
Related: 7 things you need to know about the Mars rover “Perseverance”
Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Source: NASA/JPL
Sentence / Takehiro Matsumura
