by Cade Smith
As humans we always ask questions and one of the most important questions we have is “are we alone in the universe?” To help solve that question we started looking at other planets, like focusing on Mars.
There have been several rovers sent to Mars. The rovers include Sojourner, Spirit, Opportunity, Curiosity, and now the InSight 2020 Mars rover. The newest rover hasn’t been named as of the writing of this article.
The newest rover is similar to the Curiosity rover, but the technology has been upgraded. The main body is the same as Curiosity. To save time and money, the new rover has 85 percent of the Curiosity rover’s hardware. The remaining 15 percent includes a number of innovations, like advanced navigation and imaging systems.
The newest rover, which is scheduled to launch in 2020, will go and search for actual signs of past Mars life. The Mars 2020 rover has a drill to collect core samples of the rocks and soils and make a cache on the surface of Mars. Then a future mission could potentially return the samples to Earth for study.
The rover’s main instruments are a dome-shape package containing seismometer and a heat probe that is to burrow about 16 feet down.
According to the New York Times, “The seismometers, which are designed to measure surface movements less than the width of a hydrogen atom, will produce what are essentially sonograms of the planet’s insides.”
The scientists are looking to record at 10 to 12 marsquakes over two years. The seismometers could also detect other seismic vibrations from meteors hitting Mars.
The tremors on Mars are not caused by plate tectonics, like on Earth. They are generated when the planet’s crust cracks because of the interior’s cooling and shrinking.
The new Mars rover has four objectives in its journey. The first objective is to identify past environments capable to support microbial life. The second is to look for possible past microbial life in the habitable environments. The third is to collect core rock and soil samples and store them on Mars's surface. The final objective is to test the oxygen production from the Martian atmosphere.
The official NASA website stated “All relate to the potential of Mars as a place for life. The first three consider the possibility of past microbial life. Even if the rover does not discover any signs of past life, it paves the way for human life on Mars someday.”
The rover also conducts other studies related to its objectives. The rover monitors weather and dust in the atmosphere, which are important for understanding the daily and seasonal changes on Mars. These could help future human explorers better predict the Martian weather.
The rovers primary mission on the surface is to last nearly two years. Dr. Banerdt, Insight Principal Investigator, hopes to learn how thick is the crust of Mars. The new rover should finally provide the answer with the new drill that is attached to the arm. According to the New York Times, “Other questions the mission aims to answer: How often does the ground shake with marsquakes? How big is Mars’s molten core? How much heat is flowing up from the decay of radioactive elements at the core?”
Maybe in the near future, there could be a chance to see some micro life on Mars. Or in the distant future, there could be people living on another planet. But for now, scientists should continue the study of Mars and space until the day comes.
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