Mars 2020

Astrobiology Mars rover mission by NASA

For a chronological guide, see Timeline of Mars 2020.

Mars 2020

Self-portrait of Perseverance and Ingenuity (left) at Wright Brothers Field, 2021

Mission type| Mars exploration
Operator|

* NASA
* JPL

COSPAR ID| 2020-052A
SATCAT no.| 45983
Mission duration| 1 Mars year (668 sols, 687 Earth days) (planned)
Perseverance: 3 years and 1 day (since landing)
Ingenuity: 2 years, 9 months and 22 days (final)
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft| Perseverance
Ingenuity
Launch mass| 3,649 kg (8,045 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date| 30 July 2020, 11:50:00 UTC
Rocket| Atlas V 541 (AV-088)
Launch site| Cape Canaveral, SLC-41
Contractor| United Launch Alliance
Mars rover
Landing date| 18 February 2021
Landing site| Octavia E. Butler Landing, Jezero
18°26′41″N 77°27′03″E﻿ / ﻿18.4447°N 77.4508°E﻿ / 18.4447; 77.4508
Distance driven| 23.73 km (14.75 mi) as of 3 January 2024[update] [1]
Mars aircraft
Landing date| 3 April 2021 (Deployed from Perseverance)[2]
Landing site| Helipad at Wright Brothers Field near Octavia E. Butler Landing, Jezero[3]
18°26′41″N 77°27′04″E﻿ / ﻿18.44486°N 77.45102°E﻿ / 18.44486; 77.45102
Distance flown| 17.242 km (10.714 mi) in 72 flights[1]

NASA and JPL insignias

Mars Exploration Program

<- Mars Science Laboratory

NASA-ESA Mars Sample Return ->

Mars 2020 is a NASA mission that includes the rover Perseverance, the now-retired small robotic helicopter Ingenuity, and associated delivery systems, as part of the Mars Exploration Program. Mars 2020 was launched on an Atlas V rocket at 11:50:01 UTC on July 30, 2020,[4] and landed in the Martian crater Jezero on February 18, 2021, with confirmation received at 20:55 UTC.[5] On March 5, 2021, NASA named the landing site Octavia E. Butler Landing.[6] As of 19 February 2024, Perseverance has been on Mars for 1067 sols (1096 total days; 3 years, 1 day).[7][8][9][10][11] Ingenuity operated on Mars for 1042 sols (1071 total days; 1 year, 341 days) before sustaining serious damage to its rotor blades, possibly all four, causing NASA to retire the craft on January 25, 2024.[12][13]

Perseverance is investigating an astrobiologically relevant ancient environment on Mars for its surface geological processes and history, and assessing its past habitability, the possibility of past life on Mars, and the potential for preservation of biosignatures within accessible geological materials.[14][15] It will cache sample containers along its route for retrieval by a potential future Mars sample-return mission.[15][16][17] The Mars 2020 mission was announced by NASA in December 2012 at the fall meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco. Perseverance's design is derived from the rover Curiosity, and it uses many components already fabricated and tested in addition to new scientific instruments and a core drill.[18] The rover also employs nineteen cameras and two microphones,[19] allowing for the audio recording of the Martian environment. On April 30, 2021, Perseverance became the first spacecraft to hear and record another spacecraft, the Ingenuity helicopter, on another planet.

The launch of Mars 2020 was the third of three space missions sent toward Mars during the July 2020 Mars launch window, with missions also launched by the national space agencies of the United Arab Emirates (the Emirates Mars Mission with the orbiter Hope on July 19, 2020) and China (the Tianwen-1 mission on July 23, 2020, with an orbiter, deployable and remote cameras, lander, and Zhurong rover).

## Conception[edit]

The Mars 2020 mission was announced by NASA on December 4, 2012, at the fall meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco.[20] The selection of Mars as the target of NASA's flagship mission elicited surprise from some members of the scientific community. Some criticized NASA for continuing to focus on Mars exploration instead of other Solar System destinations in constrained budget times.[21][22] Support came from California U.S. Representative Adam Schiff, who said he was interested in the possibility of advancing the launch date, which would enable a larger payload.[20] Science educator Bill Nye endorsed the Mars sample-return role, saying this would be "extraordinarily fantastic and world-changing and worthy."[23]

## Objectives[edit]

Sample tubes being loaded into the Perseverance rover

The mission is aimed at seeking signs of habitable conditions on Mars in the ancient past, and also at searching for evidence—or biosignatures—of past microbial life, and water. The mission was launched July 30, 2020, on an Atlas V-541,[20] and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the mission. The mission is part of NASA's Mars Exploration Program.[24][25][26][16] The Science Definition Team proposed that the rover collect and package as many as 31 samples of rock cores and surface soil for a later mission to bring back for definitive analysis on Earth.[27] In 2015, they expanded the concept, planning to collect even more samples and distribute the tubes in small piles or caches across the surface of Mars.[28]

In September 2013, NASA launched an Announcement of Opportunity for researchers to propose and develop the instruments needed, including the Sample Caching System.[29][30] The science instruments for the mission were selected in July 2014 after an open competition based on the scientific objectives set one year earlier.[31][32] The science conducted by the rover's instruments will provide the context needed for detailed analyses of the returned samples.[33] The chairman of the Science Definition Team stated that NASA does not presume that life ever existed on Mars, but given the recent Curiosity rover findings, past Martian life seems possible.[33]

The Perseverance rover will explore a site likely to have been habitable. It will seek signs of past life, set aside a returnable cache with the most compelling rock core and soil samples, and demonstrate the technology needed for the future human and robotic exploration of Mars. A key mission requirement is that it must help prepare NASA for its long-term Mars sample-return mission and crewed mission efforts.[15][16][17] The rover will make measurements and technology demonstrations to help designers of a future human expedition understand any hazards posed by Martian dust, and will test technology to produce a small amount of pure oxygen (O2) from Martian atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2).[34]

Improved precision landing technology that enhances the scientific value of robotic missions also will be critical for eventual human exploration on the surface.[35] Based on input from the Science Definition Team, NASA defined the final objectives for the 2020 rover. Those became the basis for soliciting proposals to provide instruments for the rover's science payload in the spring of 2014.[34] The mission will also attempt to identify subsurface water, improve landing techniques, and characterize weather, dust, and other potential environmental conditions that could affect future astronauts living and working on Mars.[36]

Campaign plans for 2021–2022 The heat shield (left) and back shell (right) together make up the aeroshell for NASA's Mars 2020 mission. The diameter of each part is about 15 feet (4.5 metres). The rover and its descent stage were enclosed and shielded by the aeroshell during their deep space voyage to Mars and upon entry into the Martian atmosphere, which generated intense heat. The aeroshell was made by Lockheed Martin Space in Denver, Colorado, where the photo was taken.

A key mission requirement for this rover is that it must help prepare NASA for its Mars sample-return mission (MSR) campaign,[37][38][39] which is needed before any crewed mission takes place.[15][16][17] Such effort would require three additional vehicles: an orbiter, a fetch rover, and a two-stage, solid-fueled Mars ascent vehicle (MAV).[40][41] Between 20 and 30 drilled samples will be collected and cached inside small tubes by the Perseverance rover,[42] and will be left on the surface of Mars for possible later retrieval by NASA in collaboration with ESA.[39][42] A "fetch rover" would retrieve the sample caches and deliver them to a two-stage, solid-fueled Mars ascent vehicle (MAV). In July 2018, NASA contracted Airbus to produce a "fetch rover" concept study.[43] The MAV would launch from Mars and enter a 500 km orbit and rendezvous with the Next Mars Orbiter or Earth Return Orbiter.[39] The sample container would be transferred to an Earth entry vehicle (EEV) which would bring it to Earth, enter the atmosphere under a parachute and hard-land for retrieval and analyses in specially designed safe laboratories.[38][39]

In the first science campaign Perseverance performs an arching drive southward from its landing site to the Séítah unit to perform a "toe dip" into the unit to collect remote-sensing measurements of geologic targets. After that she will return to the Crater Floor Fractured Rough to collect the first core sample there. Passing by the Octavia B. Butler landing site concludes the first science campaign.

The second campaign shall start with several months of travel towards the "Three Forks" where Perseverance can access geologic locations at the base of the ancient delta of Neretva river, as well as ascend the delta by driving up a valley wall to the northwest.[44]

## Spacecraft[edit]

### Cruise stage and EDLS[edit]

Animation of Mars 2020's trajectory from 30 July 2020 to 20 February 2021

* Mars 2020
* Sun
* Earth
* Mars

The three major components of the Mars 2020 spacecraft are the 539 kg (1,188 lb)[45] cruise stage for travel between Earth and Mars; the Entry, Descent, and Landing System (EDLS) that includes the 575 kg (1,268 lb)[45] aeroshell descent vehicle + 440 kg (970 lb) heat shield; and the 1,070 kg (2,360 lb) (fueled mass)[45] descent stage needed to deliver Perseverance and Ingenuity safely to the Martian surface. The Descent Stage carries 400 kg (880 lb) landing propellant for the final soft landing burn after being slowed down by a 21.5 m (71 ft)-wide, 81 kg (179 lb) parachute.[45] The 1,025 kg (2,260 lb)[45] rover is based on the design of Curiosity.[20] While there are differences in scientific instruments and the engineering required to support them, the entire landing system (including the descent stage and heat shield) and rover chassis could essentially be recreated without any additional engineering or research. This reduces overall technical risk for the mission, while saving funds and time on development.[46]

One of the upgrades is a guidance and control technique called "Terrain Relative Navigation" (TRN) to fine-tune steering in the final moments of landing.[47][48] This system allowed for a landing accuracy within 40 m (130 ft) and avoided obstacles.[49] This is a marked improvement from the Mars Science Laboratory mission that had an elliptical area of 7 by 20 km (4.3 by 12.4 mi).[50] In October 2016, NASA reported using the Xombie rocket to test the Lander Vision System (LVS), as part of the Autonomous Descent and Ascent Powered-flight Testbed (ADAPT) experimental technologies, for the Mars 2020 mission landing, meant to increase the landing accuracy and avoid obstacle hazards.[51][52]

## Perseverance rover[edit]

Main article: Perseverance (rover)

Spacecraft of Mars 2020

Perseverance rover at JPL

Seven scientific instruments aboard Perseverance

Ingenuity helicopter

The cruise stage and EDLS carried both spacecraft to Mars.

Perseverance was designed with help from Curiosity's engineering team, as both are quite similar and share common hardware.[20][53] Engineers redesigned Perseverance's wheels to be more robust than Curiosity's, which, after kilometres of driving on the Martian surface, have shown progressed deterioration.[54] Perseverance will have thicker, more durable aluminium wheels, with reduced width and a greater diameter, 52.5 cm (20.7 in), than Curiosity's 50 cm (20 in) wheels.[55][56] The aluminium wheels are covered with cleats for traction and curved titanium spokes for springy support.[57] The combination of the larger instrument suite, new Sampling and Caching System, and modified wheels makes Perseverance 14 percent heavier than Curiosity, at 1,025 kg (2,260 lb) and 899 kg (1,982 lb), respectively.[56] The rover will include a five-jointed robotic arm measuring 2.1 m (6 ft 11 in) long. The arm will be used in combination with a turret to analyze geologic samples from the Martian surface.[58]

A Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG), left over as a backup part for Curiosity during its construction, was integrated onto the rover to supply electrical power.[20][59] The generator has a mass of 45 kg (99 lb) and contains 4.8 kg (11 lb) of plutonium dioxide as the source of steady supply of heat that is converted to electricity.[60] The electrical power generated is approximately 110 watts at launch with little decrease over the mission time.[60]

Two lithium-ion rechargeable batteries are included to meet peak demands of rover activities when the demand temporarily exceeds the MMRTG's steady electrical output levels. The MMRTG offers a 14-year operational lifetime, and it was provided to NASA by the United States Department of Energy.[60] Unlike solar panels, the MMRTG does not rely on the presence of the Sun for power, providing engineers with significant flexibility in operating the rover's instruments even at night and during dust storms, and through the winter season.[60]

The Norwegian-developed radar RIMFAX is one of the seven instruments that have been placed on board. The radar has been developed together with FFI (Norwegian Defence Research Establishment), led by Principal Investigator Svein-Erik Hamran of FFI, the Norwegian Space Center,[61] and a number of Norwegian companies. Space has also been found for the first time for an uncrewed helicopter, which will be controlled by NTNU (Norwegian University of Science and Technology) trained cybernetics engineer Håvard Fjær Grip and his team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Los Angeles.[62]

Each Mars mission contributes to an ongoing innovation chain. Each draws on prior operations or tested technologies and contributes uniquely to upcoming missions. By using this strategy, NASA is able to advance the frontiers of what is currently feasible while still depending on earlier advancements.

The Curiosity rover, which touched down on Mars in 2012, is directly responsible for a large portion of Perseverance's rover design, including its entry, descent, and landing mechanism. With Perseverance, new technological innovations will be demonstrated, and entry, descent, and landing capabilities will be improved. These advancements will help open the door for future robotic and human missions to the Moon and Mars.

A piece of fabric from the wing of the 1903 Wright Flyer airplane of the Wright brothers is attached under the solar panel of the Ingenuity helicopter.

### Ingenuity helicopter[edit]

Main article: Ingenuity (helicopter)

Ingenuity is a defunct robotic coaxial helicopter that made the first aircraft flights on another planet.[63]

It was deployed from the underside of Perseverance and uses autonomous control guided by flight plan instructions uploaded from mission control.[64][63]

After each landing, it transmits photographs and other data to Perseverance, which relays the information to Earth. NASA will build on the helicopter's design for future Mars missions.[65] The helicopter flew 72 times until its end of mission on January 25, 2024.[66]

## Mission[edit]

See also: Water on Mars and Life on Mars

The Jezero crater delta on Mars, where the Perseverance rover and Ingenuity helicopter landed. Clays are visible as green in this false color CRISM / CTX image. Jezero Crater Formation by asteroid impact

The mission is centered around exploring Jezero crater, which scientists speculate was a 250 m (820 ft) deep lake about 3.9 billion to 3.5 billion years ago.[67] Jezero today features a prominent river delta where water flowing through it deposited much sediment over the eons, which is "extremely good at preserving biosignatures".[67][68] The sediments in the delta likely include carbonates and hydrated silica, known to preserve microscopic fossils on Earth for billions of years.[69] Prior to the selection of Jezero, eight proposed landing sites for the mission were under consideration by September 2015; Columbia Hills in Gusev crater, Eberswalde crater, Holden crater, Jezero crater,[70][71] Mawrth Vallis, Northeastern Syrtis Major Planum, Nili Fossae, and Southwestern Melas Chasma.[72]

A workshop was held on February 8–10, 2017, in Pasadena, California, to discuss these sites, with the goal of narrowing down the list to three sites for further consideration.[73] The three sites chosen were Jezero crater, Northeastern Syrtis Major Planum, and Columbia Hills.[74] Jezero crater was ultimately selected as the landing site in November 2018.[67] The "fetch rover" for returning the samples is expected to launch in 2026. The landing and surface operations of the "fetch rover" would take place early in 2029. The earliest return to Earth is envisaged for 2031.[75]

## Launch and cruise[edit]

Mars 2020 launching from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, at 11:50 UTC on 30 July 2020

The launch window, when the positions of Earth and Mars were optimal for traveling to Mars, opened on July 17, 2020, and lasted through August 15, 2020.[76] The rocket was launched on July 30, 2020, at 11:50 UTC, and the rover landed on Mars on February 18, 2021, at 20:55 UTC, with a planned surface mission of at least one Mars year (668 sols or 687 Earth days).[77][78][79] Two other missions to Mars were launch in this window: the United Arab Emirates Space Agency launched its Emirates Mars Mission with the Hope orbiter on July 20, 2020, which arrived in Mars orbit on February 8, 2021, and China National Space Administration launched Tianwen-1 on July 23, 2020, arriving in orbit on February 10, 2021, and successfully soft landed with the Zhurong rover on May 14, 2021.[80]

NASA announced that all of the trajectory correction maneuvers (TCM) were a success. The spacecraft fired thrusters to adjust its course toward Mars, shifting the probe's initial post-launch aim point onto the Red Planet.[81]

## Entry, descent, and landing (EDL)[edit]

Diagram of the various stages of the EDL process for Perseverance The rover photographed from the sky crane during descent

Prior to landing, the Science Team from an earlier NASA lander, InSight, announced that they would attempt to detect the entry, descent and landing (EDL) sequence of the Mars 2020 mission using InSight's seismometers. Despite being more than 3,400 km (2,100 mi) away from the Mars landing site, the team indicated that there was a possibility that InSight's instruments would be sensitive enough to detect the hypersonic impact of Mars 2020's cruise mass balance devices with the Martian surface.[82][83]

The rover's landing was planned similar to the Mars Science Laboratory used to deploy Curiosity on Mars in 2012. The craft from Earth was a carbon fiber capsule that protected the rover and other equipment from heat during entry into the Mars atmosphere and initial guidance towards the planned landing site. Once through, the craft jettisoned the lower heat shield and deployed a parachute from the backshell to slow the descent to a controlled speed. With the craft moving under 320 km/h (200 mph) and about 1.9 km (1.2 mi) from the surface, the rover and sky crane assembly detached from the backshell, and rockets on the sky crane controlled the remaining descent to the planet. As the sky crane moved closer to the surface, it lowered Perseverance via cables until it confirmed touchdown, detached the cables, and flew a distance away to avoid damaging the rover.[84]

Perseverance recording of the ambient noise on Mars, modified to remove the background sounds of the rover

Perseverance successfully landed on the surface of Mars with help of the sky crane on February 18, 2021, at 20:55 UTC, to begin its science phase, and began sending images back to Earth.[85] Ingenuity reported back to NASA via the communications systems on Perseverance the following day, confirming its status. The helicopter was not expected to be deployed for at least 60 days into the mission.[86] NASA also confirmed that the on-board microphone on Perseverance had survived entry, descent and landing (EDL), along with other high-end visual recording devices, and released the first audio recorded on the surface of Mars shortly after landing,[87] capturing the sound of a Martian breeze[88] as well as a hum from the rover itself. On May 7, 2021, NASA confirmed that Perseverance managed to record both audio and video from Ingenuity's fourth flight which took place on April 30, 2021.[89]

## Major mission milestones and works[edit]

Main article: Timeline of Mars 2020

"Crater Floor Fractured Rough" is the area from which the first rock sample shall be collected[90]

* February 18, 2021 – Landing of Perseverance on Mars surface
* March 4, 2021 – First major test of Perseverance drive functions
* April 3, 2021 – Deployment of Ingenuity
* April 3–4, 2021 – Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) recorded the first weather report on Mars[91]
* April 19, 2021 – First flight of Ingenuity
* April 20, 2021 – Mars Oxygen ISRU Experiment (MOXIE) generated 5.37 g (0.189 oz) of oxygen gas from carbon dioxide on its first test on Mars.
* June 1, 2021 – Perseverance begins its first science campaign.
* June 8, 2021 – Seventh flight of Ingenuity.
* June 21, 2021 – Eighth flight of Ingenuity. The "watchdog issue", a recurring issue which occasionally prevented Ingenuity from taking flight, is fixed.
* July 5, 2021 – Ninth flight of Ingenuity. This flight is the first to explore areas only an aerial vehicle can, by taking a shortcut over the Séítah unit. The sandy ripples of the Séítah unit would prove too difficult for Perseverance to travel through directly.
* August 6, 2021 – Perseverance acquired its first sample from the ancient lakebed.[92]
* May 3, 2022 – After 27 flights of Ingenuity, the rover lost contact with the helicopter. By suspending scientific operations on the rover to listen for signals from the helicopter, NASA was able to regain contact and resume flights.
* January 25, 2024 – NASA announces end of mission for Ingenuity. Engineers determined that the helicopter sustained damage after a communications blackout with Perseverance just before the landing of flight 72. Photos taken by Ingenuity showed that its rotor blades, possibly all four, were damaged, resulting in the decision not to fly again. Final system tests and retrieval of data are ongoing.[66][93][13] Ingenuity Team have named the final landing spot and resting place of Ingenuity in Airfield Chi (χ) as "Valinor Hills Station", after the fictional location in J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy novels.[94]

## Gallery[edit]

Mapping Perseverance's samples collected to date (The 10 duplicate samples to be left behind at Three Forks Sample Depot are framed in green colour.) In support of the NASA-ESA Mars Sample Return, rock, regolith (Martian soil), and atmosphere samples are being cached by Perseverance. As of October 2023, 26 out of 43 sample tubes have been filled,[95] including 8 igneous rock samples, 12 sedimentary rock sample tubes,[96] two regolith sample tubes, an atmosphere sample tube,[97] and three witness tubes.[98] Before launch, 5 of the 43 tubes were designated “witness tubes” and filled with materials that would capture particulates in the ambient environment of Mars. Out of 43 tubes, 3 witness sample tubes will not be returned to Earth and will remain on rover as the sample canister will only have 30 tube slots. Further, 10 of the 43 tubes are left as backups at the Three Forks Sample Depot.[99]

Mars Perseverance rover – Octavia E. Butler Landing Site in the Jezero crater (5 March 2021)

First image taken by the rover after its successful landing

Second Perseverance rover image on Mars

First color image from Perseverance rover after landing

Mars Perseverance rover – Panoramic view of landing site (18 February 2021)

The Ingenuity helicopter views the Perseverance rover (left) about 85 m (279 ft) away from 5.0 m (16.4 ft) in the air (25 April 2021)

Mars Perseverance rover – Possible route for exploration and study

Ingenuity helicopter

Ingenuity being deployed from under Persevervence

The deployed Ingenuity on Sol 46

Black-and-white photo from Ingenuity during its first test flight at an altitude of 1.2 m (3 ft 11 in), showing its shadow on the ground

First color aerial image on Mars taken by Ingenuity, at around 5.2 m (17 ft) high in flight

Perseverance captures video, audio of fourth Ingenuity flight
(video; 02:44; 30 April 2021)

Ingenuity after its fifth flight landing on Airfield B (7 May 2021)

Entry-descent-landing debris

Ingenuity photographed the spacecraft backshell and parachute (April 19).[100]

Perseverance photographed the spacecraft backshell and parachute (April 14).

Ingenuity photographed an apparent EDL debris (April 3).

Perseverance photographed a thermal blanket from the skycrane 2 km (1.2 mi) away from its crash site.

Perseverance Rover instruments

Graph of MOXIE's first martian oxygen production test, 20 April 2021

Valinor Hills in the Airfield Chi (χ), Mars, Ingenuity's final airfield (see SQUARE near off-center right of image) as viewed by the Perseverance rover on February 4, 2024.

## Cost[edit]

NASA plans to expend roughly US$2.8 billion on the Mars 2020 mission over 10 years: almost $2.2 billion on the development of the Perseverance rover, $80 million on the Ingenuity helicopter, $243 million for launch services, and $296 million for 2.5 years of mission operations.[37][101] Adjusted for inflation, Mars 2020 is the sixth-most expensive robotic planetary mission made by NASA and is cheaper than its predecessor, the Curiosity rover.[102] As well as using spare hardware, Perseverance also used designs from Curiosity's mission without needing to redesign them, which helped save "probably tens of millions, if not 100 million dollars" according to Mars 2020 Deputy Chief Engineer Keith Comeaux.[103]

## Public outreach[edit]

To raise public awareness of the Mars 2020 mission, NASA undertook a "Send Your Name To Mars" campaign, through which people could send their names to Mars on a microchip stored aboard Perseverance. After registering their names, participants received a digital ticket with details of the mission's launch and destination. There were 10,932,295 names submitted during the registration period.[104] In addition, NASA announced in June 2019 that a student naming contest for the rover would be held in the fall of 2019, with voting on nine finalist names held in January 2020.[105] Perseverance was announced to be the winning name on March 5, 2020.[106][107]

* "Send Your Name" placard attached to Perseverance

* Sample souvenir boarding pass for those who registered their names to be flown aboard the Perseverance rover

* NASA Eventbrite Virtual Guest Program Post flight mission patch given to Eventbrite subscribers

In May 2020, NASA attached a small aluminum plate to Perseverance to commemorate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and pay "tribute to the perseverance of healthcare workers around the world". The COVID-19 Perseverance Plate features planet Earth above the Rod of Asclepius, with a line showing the trajectory of the Mars 2020 spacecraft departing Earth.[108]

The supersonic parachute that helped decelerate Perseverance carried an Easter egg along with it.

On February 22, 2021, NASA released uninterrupted footage of the landing process of Mars 2020 from parachute deployment to touchdown in a livestream broadcast.[109] Upon release of this footage, engineers revealed that the rover's parachute contained a puzzle; Internet users had solved it within six hours. The parachute's pattern was based on binary code and translated to the motto of JPL (Dare Mighty Things) and the coordinates of its headquarters. Irregular patterns are frequently used on spacecraft parachutes to better determine the performance of specific parts of the parachute.[110]

A small piece of the wing covering from the Wright brothers' 1903 Wright Flyer is attached to a cable underneath Ingenuity's solar panel.[111]

NASA scientist Swati Mohan delivered the news of the successful landing.[112]

## See also[edit]

* ExoMars, European-Russian Mars exploration program
* Exploration of Mars
* List of missions to Mars
* Mars Astrobiology Explorer-Cacher

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b "Where is Perseverance?". Mars 2020 Mission Perseverance Rover. NASA. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
2. ^ "NASA's Mars Helicopter Survives First Cold Martian Night on Its Own". Nasa Mars Website. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
3. ^ "NASA to Attempt First Controlled Flight on Mars As Soon As Monday". April 17, 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
4. ^ "NASA, ULA Launch Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover Mission to Red Planet". NASA. July 30, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
5. ^ "Touchdown! NASA's Mars Perseverance Rover Safely Lands on Red Planet". NASA's Mars Exploration Program. February 18, 2021. Retrieved February 19, 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
6. ^ "Welcome to 'Octavia E. Butler Landing'". NASA. March 5, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
7. ^ Strickland, Ashley (April 15, 2021). "Why Mars? The fascination with exploring the red planet". CNN. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
8. ^ "Mars | Facts, Surface, Moons, Temperature, & Atmosphere | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
9. ^ Ben Turner (July 16, 2021). "Some evidence of ancient Martian life has mysteriously vanished, NASA finds". livescience.com. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
10. ^ mars.nasa.gov. "Mars Technologies - NASA". mars.nasa.gov. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
11. ^ Chang, Kenneth (September 15, 2022). "Life on Mars? This Could Be the Place NASA's Rover Helps Us Find It". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
12. ^ "After Three Years on Mars, NASA's Ingenuity Helicopter Mission Ends". Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
13. ^ a b NASA Science Live: Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Tribute & Legacy, retrieved February 1, 2024
14. ^ Chang, Alicia (July 9, 2013). "Panel: Next Mars rover should gather rocks, soil". Associated Press. Retrieved July 12, 2013.
15. ^ a b c d Schulte, Mitch (December 20, 2012). "Call for Letters of Application for Membership on the Science Definition Team for the 2020 Mars Science Rover" (PDF). NASA. NNH13ZDA003L. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
16. ^ a b c d "Summary of the Final Report" (PDF). NASA / Mars Program Planning Group. September 25, 2012. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
17. ^ a b c Moskowitz, Clara (February 5, 2013). "Scientists Offer Wary Support for NASA's New Mars Rover". Space.com. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
18. ^ Amos, Jonathan (December 4, 2012). "NASA to send new rover to Mars in 2020". BBC News. Retrieved December 5, 2012.
19. ^ February 2021, Mike Wall 17 (February 17, 2021). "The sounds of Mars: NASA's Perseverance rover will put ears on the Red Planet for the 1st time". Space.com. Retrieved February 18, 2021.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
20. ^ a b c d e f Harwood, William (December 4, 2012). "NASA announces plans for new US$1.5 billion Mars rover". CNET. Retrieved December 5, 2012. "Using spare parts and mission plans developed for NASA's Curiosity Mars rover, the space agency says it can build and launch the rover in 2020 and stay within current budget guidelines."
21. ^ Matson, John (February 21, 2013). "Has NASA Become Mars-Obsessed?". Scientific American. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
22. ^ Reilly, Doug (December 6, 2012). "NASA Announces New Mars Rover: De ja vu, all over again..." bicycleastronomy.org. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
23. ^ Rosie Mestel (December 6, 2012). "Bill Nye, the (planetary) science guy, on NASA's future". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 3, 2013.
24. ^ "Program And Missions – 2020 Mission Plans". NASA. 2015. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
25. ^ Mann, Adam (December 4, 2012). "NASA Announces New Twin Rover for Curiosity Launching to Mars in 2020". Wired. Retrieved December 5, 2012.
26. ^ Leone, Dan (October 3, 2012). "Mars Planning Group Endorses Sample Return". SpaceNews.
27. ^ Greicius, Tony (March 2, 2015). "Science Team Outlines Goals for NASA's 2020 Mars Rover". NASA. Retrieved February 19, 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
28. ^ Davis, Jason (August 28, 2017). "NASA considers kicking Mars sample return into high gear". The Planetary Society.
29. ^ "Announcement of Opportunity: Mars 2020 Investigations" (PDF). NASA. September 24, 2013. Retrieved May 18, 2014. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
30. ^ "Mars 2020 Mission: Instruments". NASA. 2013. Retrieved May 18, 2014. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
31. ^ Brown, Dwayne (July 31, 2014). "Release 14-208 – NASA Announces Mars 2020 Rover Payload to Explore the Red Planet as Never Before". NASA. Retrieved July 31, 2014. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
32. ^ "Objectives – 2020 Mission Plans". mars.nasa.gov. Retrieved December 4, 2015. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
33. ^ a b "Science Team Outlines Goals for NASA's 2020 Mars Rover". Jet Propulsion Laboratory. NASA. July 9, 2013. Retrieved July 10, 2013. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
34. ^ a b Klotz, Irene (November 21, 2013). "Mars 2020 Rover To Include Test Device To Tap Planet's Atmosphere for Oxygen". SpaceNews. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
35. ^ Bergin, Chris (September 2, 2014). "Curiosity EDL data to provide 2020 Mars Rover with super landing skills". NASASpaceFlight.com.
36. ^ "Mars 2020 Rover – Overview". NASA/JPL. Retrieved July 6, 2018. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
37. ^ a b "Mars 2020 Landing Press Kit" (PDF). JPL. NASA. p. 15. Retrieved February 17, 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
38. ^ a b Evans, Kim (October 13, 2015). "NASA Eyes Sample-Return Capability for Post-2020 Mars Orbiter". Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
39. ^ a b c d Mattingly, Richard (March 2010). "Mission Concept Study: Planetary Science Decadal Survey – MSR Orbiter Mission (Including Mars Returned Sample Handling)" (PDF). NASA. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
40. ^ Ross, D.; Russell, J.; Sutter, B. (March 2012). "Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV): Designing for high heritage and low risk". 2012 IEEE Aerospace Conference. pp. 1–6. doi:10.1109/AERO.2012.6187296. ISBN 978-1-4577-0557-1. S2CID 21266048.
41. ^ Prince, Andrew; McCauley, Rachel; Kibbey, Timothy; McCollum, Lisa; Oglesby, Britt; Stenfanski, Philip (March 2019). "Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV)" (PDF). This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
42. ^ a b How NASA's Next Mars Rover Will Hunt for Alien Life. Mike Wall, Space.com, 11 December 2019
43. ^ Amos, Jonathan (July 6, 2018). "Fetch rover! Robot to retrieve Mars rocks". BBC News. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
44. ^ "Perseverance's First Road Trip".
45. ^ a b c d e "Fiche Technique: Mars 2020 Vaisseau Spatial" [Mars 2020]. Espace & Exploration (in French). No. 61\. January 2021. pp. 42–43. Archived from the original on January 16, 2021. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
46. ^ Dreier, Casey (January 10, 2013). "New Details on the 2020 Mars Rover". The Planetary Society. Retrieved March 15, 2013.
47. ^ Agle, D. C. (July 1, 2019). "A Neil Armstrong for Mars: Landing the Mars 2020 Rover". NASA. Retrieved July 1, 2019. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
48. ^ "Mars 2020 Rover: Entry, Descent, and Landing System". NASA. July 2016. Retrieved July 17, 2016. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
49. ^ Here's an example of the crazy lengths NASA goes to land safely on Mars. Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 7 October 2019
50. ^ "NASA Mars Rover Team Aims for Landing Closer to Prime Science Site". June 11, 2012. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
51. ^ Williams, Leslie; Webster, Guy; Anderson, Gina (October 4, 2016). "NASA Flight Program Tests Mars Lander Vision System". NASA. Retrieved October 5, 2016. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
52. ^ Murphy, Marshall (October 4, 2016). "Fresh Eyes on Mars: Mars 2020 Lander Vision System Tested through NASA's Flight Opportunities Program". NASA. Retrieved January 28, 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
53. ^ Wall, Mike (December 4, 2012). "NASA to Launch New Mars Rover in 2020". Space.com. Retrieved December 5, 2012.
54. ^ Lakdawalla, Emily (August 19, 2014). "Curiosity wheel damage: The problem and solutions". planetary.org/blogs. The Planetary Society. Retrieved August 22, 2014.
55. ^ Gebhardt, Chris (October 11, 2016). "Mars 2020 rover receives upgraded eyesight for tricky skycrane landing". NASASpaceFlight. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
56. ^ a b "Mars 2020 – Body: New Wheels for Mars 2020". NASA/JPL. Retrieved July 6, 2018. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
57. ^ "Mars 2020 Rover – Wheels". NASA. Retrieved July 9, 2018. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
58. ^ "Mars 2020 Rover's 7-Foot-Long Robotic Arm Installed". mars.nasa.gov. June 28, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019. "The main arm includes five electrical motors and five joints (known as the shoulder azimuth joint, shoulder elevation joint, elbow joint, wrist joint and turret joint). Measuring 7 feet (2.1 meters) long, the arm will allow the rover to work as a human geologist would: by holding and using science tools with its turret, which is essentially its "hand"." This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
59. ^ Boyle, Alan (December 4, 2012). "NASA plans 2020 Mars rover remake". Cosmic Log. NBC News. Archived from the original on February 27, 2015. Retrieved December 5, 2012.
60. ^ a b c d "Mars 2020 Rover Tech Specs". JPL/NASA. Retrieved July 6, 2018. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
61. ^ Romsenter, Norsk. "Svein-Erik Hamran". Norsk Romsenter (in Norwegian). Retrieved June 4, 2021.
62. ^ Helland Urke, Eirik (February 18, 2021). "Direkte: Mars Perseverance har landet!". Teknisk Ukeblad (in Norwegian). Retrieved February 20, 2021.
63. ^ a b "Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Landing Press Kit" (PDF). NASA. January 2021. Retrieved February 14, 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
64. ^ Decision expected soon on adding helicopter to Mars 2020 Jeff Fout, SpaceNews, 4 May 2018
65. ^ Mars Helicopter Technology Demonstrator, J. (Bob) Balaram, Timothy Canham, Courtney Duncan, Matt Golombek, Håvard Fjær Grip, Wayne Johnson, Justin Maki, Amelia Quon, Ryan Stern, and David Zhu. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), SciTech Forum Conference; 8–12 January 2018, Kissimmee, Florida doi:10.2514/6.2018-0023 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
66. ^ a b "After Three Years on Mars, NASA's Ingenuity Helicopter Mission Ends - NASA". Retrieved January 25, 2024.
67. ^ a b c Chang, Kenneth (November 19, 2018). "NASA Mars 2020 Rover Gets a Landing Site: A Crater That Contained a Lake – The rover will search the Jezero Crater and delta for the chemical building blocks of life and other signs of past microbes". The New York Times. Retrieved November 21, 2018.
68. ^ Wall, Mike (November 19, 2018). "Jezero Crater or Bust! NASA Picks Landing Site for Mars 2020 Rover". Space.com. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
69. ^ The Perseverance rover will visit the perfect spot to find signs of life, new studies show Sarah Kaplan, The Washington Post, 16 November 2019
70. ^ Hand, Eric (August 6, 2015). "Mars scientists tap ancient river deltas and hot springs as promising targets for 2020 rover". Science News. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
71. ^ "PIA19303: A Possible Landing Site for the 2020 Mission: Jezero Crater". NASA. March 4, 2015. Retrieved March 7, 2015. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
72. ^ Farley, Ken (September 8, 2015). "Researcher discusses where to land Mars 2020". Phys.org. Retrieved September 9, 2015.
73. ^ "2020 Landing Site for Mars Rover Mission". NASA / Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Archived from the original on April 20, 2017. Retrieved February 12, 2017. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
74. ^ Witze, Alexandra (February 11, 2017). "Three sites where NASA might retrieve its first Mars rock". Nature. Bibcode:2017Natur.542..279W. Retrieved February 12, 2017.
75. ^ How the Perseverance Mars Rover Will Help NASA Return Mars Samples to Earth. NASA. July 28, 2020. Event occurs from 39:55 to 42:13. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
76. ^ Foust, Jeff (June 30, 2020). "Mars 2020 launch slips again". SpaceNews. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
77. ^ Ray, Justin (July 25, 2016). "NASA books nuclear-certified Atlas 5 rocket for Mars 2020 rover launch". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
78. ^ mars.nasa.gov. "Overview – Mars 2020 Rover". mars.nasa.gov. Retrieved February 19, 2019. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
79. ^ "Mission: Overview". NASA. Retrieved March 7, 2015. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
80. ^ Bachman, Justin (February 8, 2021). "Three Mars Missions Set to Arrive This Month". Bloomberg News. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
81. ^ "Mars missions complete first course corrections on journey to Red Planet". Spaceflight Now. August 19, 2020. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
82. ^ Fernando, Benjamin; Wójcicka, Natalia; Froment, Marouchka; Maguire, Ross; Stähler, Simon C.; Rolland, Lucie; Collins, Gareth S.; Karatekin, Ozgur; Larmat, Carene; Sansom, Eleanor K.; Teanby, Nicholas A. (2021). "Listening for the Landing: Seismic Detections of Perseverance's arrival at Mars with InSight". Earth and Space Science. 8 (4): e2020EA001585. Bibcode:2021E&SS....801585F. doi:10.1029/2020EA001585. hdl:20.500.11937/90005. ISSN 2333-5084.
83. ^ O'Callaghan, Jonathan. "NASA probe on Mars may feel the ground shake as rovers land in 2021". New Scientist. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
84. ^ Betz, Eric (February 18, 2021). "The Skycrane: How NASA's Perseverance rover will land on Mars". Astronomy.com. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
85. ^ Strickland, Ashley (February 19, 2021). "Incredible new images shared by Perseverance rover after Mars landing". CNN. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
86. ^ Strickland, Ashley (February 20, 2021). "Ingenuity helicopter phones home from Mars". CNN. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
87. ^ Strickland, Ashley (February 23, 2021). "NASA shares first video and audio, new images from Mars Perseverance rover". CNN. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
88. ^ Crane, Leah (February 22, 2021). "Perseverance rover has sent back stunning video and audio from Mars". New Scientist. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
89. ^ "NASA's Perseverance Captures Video, Audio of Fourth Ingenuity Flight". NASA. May 7, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
90. ^ "Perseverance Scouts First Sampling Location". NASA. July 7, 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
91. ^ Cappucci, Matthew (April 8, 2021). "NASA receives first weather reports from Perseverance rover on Mars at Jezero Crater – The weather data is crucial as the first flight of Ingenuity draws near". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
92. ^ mars.nasa.gov. "Perseverance Rover Mars Rock Samples". NASA Mars Exploration. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
93. ^ mars.nasa.gov. "Images from the Mars Perseverance Rover - NASA". mars.nasa.gov. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
94. ^ "That's a good one! But actually... the Ingenuity team has nicknamed the spot where the helicopter completed its final flight "Valinor Hills" after the fictional location in J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy novels".
95. ^ mars.nasa.gov. "Perseverance Rover Mars Rock Samples". NASA Mars Exploration. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
96. ^ "Nobody Tell Elmo About Issole". nasa.gov. Retrieved February 11, 2022.
97. ^ mars.nasa.gov. "NASA's Perseverance Plans Next Sample Attempt". NASA’s Mars Exploration Program. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
98. ^ "Sample Caching Dry Run, 1st sample tube cached". Twitter. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
99. ^ mars.nasa.gov. "Perseverance Sample Tube 266". NASA’s Mars Exploration Program. Retrieved September 9, 2021.
100. ^ Chang, Kenneth (April 27, 2022). "NASA Sees 'Otherworldly' Wreckage on Mars With Ingenuity Helicopter - The debris was part of the equipment that helped the Perseverance mission safely land on the red planet in 2021". The New York Times. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
101. ^ "Cost of Perseverance". The Planetary Society.
102. ^ Dreier, Casey (July 29, 2020). "The Cost of Perseverance, in Context". The Planetary Society.
103. ^ "Answering Your (Mars 2020) Questions: Perseverance versus Curiosity Rover Hardware". techbriefs.com. June 19, 2020. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
104. ^ "Send Your Name to Mars: Mars 2020". mars.nasa.gov. Retrieved February 12, 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
105. ^ Agle, D.C.; Hautaluoma, Grwy; Johnson, Alana (January 21, 2020). "Nine Finalists Chosen in NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Naming Contest". NASA. Retrieved January 21, 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
106. ^ Hautaluoma, Grey; Johnsom, Alana; Agle, DC (March 5, 2020). "Virginia Middle School Student Earns Honor of Naming NASA's Next Mars Rover "Perseverance"". NASA. Retrieved March 5, 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
107. ^ Chang, Kenneth (March 5, 2020). "NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Gets New, Official Name: Perseverance – The robotic explorer is to join Curiosity on the red planet next year, and is expected to get more rolling companions built by China, Europe and Russia". The New York Times. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
108. ^ "The Launch Is Approaching for NASA's Next Mars Rover, Perseverance". NASA. June 17, 2020. Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
109. ^ See Mars Like Never Before! NASA's Perseverance Rover Sends New Video and Images of the Red Planet, retrieved January 17, 2024
110. ^ Strickland, Ashley (February 24, 2021). "The inspiring hidden message in the Mars Perseverance rover's parachute". CNN. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
111. ^ Potter, Sean (May 23, 2021). "NASA Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Prepares for First Flight". NASA. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
112. ^ Kaur, Harmeet (February 19, 2021). "The face of the Perseverance landing was an Indian American woman". CNN. Retrieved February 20, 2021.

## External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mars 2020.

* Official website
* Mars 2020: Assembly – Overall description (NASA)
* Mars 2020: Science Definition Team Report (NASA)
* Mars 2020: Send Your Name To Mars
* Mars 2020: Vote for the Name of the Rover
* Mars 2020: NASA Eyes-on-the-Solar-System

Video

* Mars 2020: Proposed Science Goals (3:09; July 2013) on YouTube
* Mars 2020: Rover and Beyond Conference (51:42; July 2014) on YouTube
* Mars 2020: Next Mission to Mars (8:57; May 2017) on YouTube
* Mars 2020: Building the Mission (3:00; December 2017) on YouTube
* Mars 2020: Building the Rover (3:50; October 2018) on YouTube
* Mars 2020: Jezero crater flyover (2:13; December 2018) on YouTube
* Mars 2020: Assembly – (Live stream; since November 2019) on YouTube
* Mars 2020: Overview (2:58; July 2020) on YouTube
* Mars 2020: LAUNCH of Rover (6:40; 30 July 2020) on YouTube
* Mars 2020: LAUNCH of Rover (1:11; 30 July 2020; NASA) on YouTube
* Mars 2020: LANDING of Rover (3:25; 18 February 2021; NASA) on YouTube
* Mars 2020: LANDING of Rover (3:55pm/et/usa, 18 February 2021
* Video: Mars Perseverance rover/Ingenuity helicopter report (9 May 2021; CBS-TV, 60 Minutes; 13:33)

Interactive image map of the global topography of Mars, overlaid with the position of Martian rovers and landers. Coloring of the base map indicates relative elevations of Martian surface.

* * *

Clickable image: Clicking on the labels will open a new article.

Legend:  Active (white lined, ※) •  Inactive •  Planned (dash lined, ⁂)

(view • discuss)

Beagle 2

Curiosity ※

Deep Space 2

Rosalind Franklin ⁂

InSight

Mars 2

Mars 3

Mars 6

Mars Polar Lander ↓

Opportunity

Perseverance ※

Phoenix

Schiaparelli EDM

Sojourner

Spirit

Zhurong

Viking 1

Viking 2

* v
* t
* e

Mars 2020

* Timeline of Mars 2020

Payloads|

* Perseverance rover
* Ingenuity helicopter (list of flights)

Rover instruments|

* Hazcam
* Mastcam-Z
* MEDA
* MOXIE
* Navcam
* PIXL
* RIMFAX
* Rover embedded computers
* SHERLOC
* SuperCam

Features|

* MarsDial
* Multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator
* Rocker-bogie
* Sky crane

Proposed
landing sites|

| Selected|

* Jezero crater

|

Finalists|

* Columbia Hills in Gusev crater
* Jezero crater
* Syrtis Major Planum

Other|

* Eberswalde crater
* Holden crater
* Mawrth Vallis
* Nili Fossae
* Melas Chasma

Related|

* Octavia E. Butler Landing
* Wright Brothers Field
* Exploration of Mars

* Category
* Solar System portal

* v
* t
* e

Mars rovers

Past missions|

* PrOP-M †

* Sojourner
* Mars Pathfinder
* Spirit and Opportunity
* Mars Exploration Rover
* Timeline of Opportunity
* Timeline of Spirit
* Zhurong
* Tianwen-1

Current missions|

* Curiosity
* Mars Science Laboratory
* timeline
* Perseverance
* Mars 2020
* timeline

Planned missions|

* Rosalind Franklin
* ExoMars

Related|

* Rover embedded computers
* Crewed Mars rover
* Lunar rover
* Lunar Roving Vehicle
* List of rovers on extraterrestrial bodies
* Mars landing
* Sky crane

Missions are ordered by launch date. Sign † indicates failure en route or before intended mission data returned.

* v
* t
* e

Astrobiology

Disciplines|

* Astrochemistry
* Astrophysics
* Atmospheric sciences
* Biochemistry
* Evolutionary biology
* Exoplanetology
* Geomicrobiology
* Microbiology
* Paleontology
* Planetary oceanography
* Planetary science

Main topics|

* Abiogenesis
* Allan Hills 84001
* Biomolecule
* Biosignature
* Drake equation
* Earliest known life forms
* Earth analog
* Extraterrestrial life
* Extraterrestrial sample curation
* Extremophiles
* Hypothetical types of biochemistry
* List of microorganisms tested in outer space
* Ocean planet
* Panspermia
* Planetary protection
* Search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI)
* Yamato meteorite

Planetary
habitability|

* Circumstellar habitable zone
* Earth analog
* Extraterrestrial liquid water
* Galactic habitable zone
* Habitability of binary star systems
* Habitability of natural satellites
* Habitability of neutron star systems
* Habitability of red dwarf systems
* Habitability of K-type main-sequence star systems
* Habitability of yellow dwarf systems
* Habitability of F-type main-sequence star systems
* List of potentially habitable exoplanets
* Tholin
* Superhabitable planet

Space
missions|

| Earth orbit|

* BIO
* BIOCORE
* Biolab
* Bion
* BIOPAN
* Biosatellite program
* E-MIST
* ERA
* Eu:CROPIS
* EXOSTACK
* EXPOSE
* Lunar Micro Ecosystem
* O/OREOS
* OREOcube
* Tanpopo
* VEGGIE

|

Mars|

* Beagle 2
* Fobos-Grunt
* Mars Science Laboratory
* Curiosity rover
* Mars 2020
* Perseverance rover
* Phoenix
* Tianwen-1
* Zhurong rover
* Trace Gas Orbiter
* Viking

Comets and
asteroids|

* Hayabusa2
* OSIRIS-REx
* Rosetta

Heliocentric|

* BioSentinel

Planned|

* Dragonfly
* Europa Clipper
* ExoMars
* Rosalind Franklin rover

Proposed|

* Breakthrough Enceladus
* BRUIE
* CAESAR
* Enceladus Explorer
* Enceladus Life Finder‎
* Enceladus Life Signatures and Habitability
* Enceladus Orbilander
* Europa Lander
* ExoLance
* Explorer of Enceladus and Titan
* Icebreaker Life
* Journey to Enceladus and Titan
* Laplace-P
* Life Investigation For Enceladus
* Mars sample return mission
* Oceanus
* THEO
* Trident

Cancelled and
undeveloped|

* Astrobiology Field Laboratory
* Beagle 3
* Biological Oxidant and Life Detection
* Kazachok
* Living Interplanetary Flight Experiment
* Mars Astrobiology Explorer-Cacher
* MELOS
* Northern Light
* Red Dragon
* Terrestrial Planet Finder

Institutions
and programs|

* Astrobiology Society of Britain
* Astrobiology Science and Technology for Exploring Planets
* Breakthrough Initiatives
* Breakthrough Listen
* Breakthrough Message
* Breakthrough Starshot
* Carl Sagan Institute
* Center for Life Detection Science
* European Astrobiology Network Association
* MERMOZ
* NASA Astrobiology Institute
* Nexus for Exoplanet System Science
* Ocean Worlds Exploration Program
* Spanish Astrobiology Center‎

* Category
* Commons

* v
* t
* e

← 2019 * Orbital launches in 2020 * 2021 →

January|

* Starlink V1.0-L2 (60 satellites)
* TJS-5
* Jilin-1 Kuanfu-01, ÑuSat 7, ÑuSat 8
* Eutelsat Konnect, GSAT-30
* Starlink V1.0-L3 (60 satellites)
* USA-294

February|

* OneWeb L2 (34 satellites)
* IGS-Optical 7
* Solar Orbiter (TechEdSat-10)
* Cygnus NG-13
* Starlink V1.0-L4 (60 satellites)
* JCSAT-17
* Meridian-M 9

March|

* SpaceX CRS-20 (Lynk 04)
* BeiDou-3 G2Q
* Kosmos 2545 / GLONASS-M 760
* Starlink V1.0-L5 (60 satellites)
* OneWeb L3 (34 satellites)
* Yaogan 30-06 (3 satellites)
* USA-298 / AEHF-6

April|

* Soyuz MS-16
* Noor
* Starlink V1.0-L6 (60 satellites)
* Progress MS-14

May|

* Chinese next-generation crewed spacecraft / Flexible Inflatable Cargo Return Module
* Xingyun-2 01, 02
* X-37B OTV-6 / FalconSAT-8
* HTV-9
* EKS-4
* LauncherOne†,
* Starshine 4†
* XJS-G, XJS-H
* Crew Dragon Demo-2

June|

* Starlink 7 (60 satellites)
* Starlink 8 (58 satellites)

July|

* Gaofen DUOMO
* Flock-4e × 5†
* Shiyan 6-02
* Ofek-16
* Apstar 6D
* Jilin-1 Gaofen-02E†
* USA-305, USA-306, USA-307, USA-308
* Emirates Mars Mission
* ANASIS-II
* Tianwen-1 (Zhurong)
* Progress MS-15
* Ziyuan III-03
* Mars 2020 (Perseverance, Ingenuity)
* Ekspress-80, Ekspress-103

August|

* Gaofen 9-04
* Starlink V1.0-L9 (57 satellites), BlackSky Global 7, BlackSky Global 8
* BSAT-4b, Galaxy 30, MEV-2
* Starlink V1.0-L10 (58 satellites), SkySat × 3
* Gaofen 9-05
* SAOCOM 1B
* Capella 2, Photon First Light

September|

* ION-SCV 001 (Flock-4v × 12), ÑuSat 6, UPM-Sat 2, Flock-4v × 14, Lemur-2 × 8, NAPA-1, SpaceBEE × 12
* Starlink V1.0-L11 (60 satellites)
* Chongfu Shiyong Shiyan Hangtian Qi
* Gaofen 11-02
* Jilin-1 Gaofen-02C†
* Jilin-1 Gaofen-03B × 6, Jilin-1 Gaofen-03C × 3
* HaiYang 2C
* Huanjing 2A, Huanjing 2B
* Gonets-M × 3, ICEYE X6, ICEYE X7, Kepler 4, Kepler 5, LacunaSat-3, Lemur-2 × 4

October|

* Cygnus NG-14 (Lemur-2 × 2, SPOC)
* Starlink V1.0-L12 (60 satellites)
* Gaofen-13
* Soyuz MS-17
* Starlink V1.0-L13 (60 satellites)
* Starlink V1.0-L14 (60 satellites)
* Kosmos 2547 / GLONASS-K 15L
* Yaogan 30-07 (3 satellites)
* Flock-4e' × 9

November|

* USA-309 / GPS IIIA-04
* ÑuSat × 10
* EOS-01 / RISAT-2BR2, KSM × 4, Lemur-2 × 4
* Tiantong-1 02
* USA-310 / NROL-101
* SpaceX Crew-1
* SEOSat-Ingenio†, TARANIS†
* Landmapper-BC 5, SpaceBEE × 18
* Sentinel-6
* Chang'e 5
* Starlink V1.0 L15 (60 satellites)

December|

* Gonets-M × 3, Kosmos 2548 / ERA-1
* Gaofen 14
* SpaceX CRS-21 (Nanoracks Bishop Airlock)
* GECAM A, GECAM B
* USA-311 / Orion 10
* SXM-7
* CMS-01 / GSAR-12R
* OneWeb L4 (36 satellites)
* USA-312, USA-313
* Yaogan 33
* CSO-2

Launches are separated by dots ( • ), payloads by commas ( , ), multiple names for the same satellite by slashes ( / ). Cubesats are smaller.
Crewed flights are underlined. Launch failures are marked with the † sign. Payloads deployed from other spacecraft are (enclosed in parentheses).

* v
* t
* e

Spacecraft missions to Mars

* List of missions to Mars
* List of Mars orbiters
* List of artificial objects on Mars

Active|

| Orbiters|

* 2001 Mars Odyssey
* Mars Express
* Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
* timeline
* MAVEN
* ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter
* Hope
* Tianwen-1 orbiter

|

Rovers|

* Curiosity
* Mars Science Laboratory
* timeline
* Perseverance
* Mars 2020
* timeline

Past|

| Flybys|

* Mars 1†
* Mariner 4
* Zond 2†
* Mariner 6 and 7
* Mars 6
* Mars 7
* Rosetta
* Dawn
* Mars Cube One (MarCO)
* Psyche (2023, flyby in 2026)

|

Orbiters|

* Mars 2
* Mars 3
* Mariner 9
* Mars 4†
* Mars 5
* Viking program
* Viking 1
* Viking 2
* Phobos program
* Phobos 1†
* Phobos 2†
* Mars Observer†
* Mars Global Surveyor
* Nozomi†
* Mars Climate Orbiter†
* Mangalyaan

Landers|

* Mars 2†
* Mars 3†
* Mars 6†
* Mars 7†
* Viking 1
* Viking 2
* Mars Pathfinder
* Mars Polar Lander† / Deep Space 2†
* Beagle 2†
* Phoenix
* ExoMars Schiaparelli†
* InSight
* Tianwen-1 lander

Rovers|

* PrOP-M†
* Sojourner
* Mars Exploration Rover
* Spirit
* timeline
* Opportunity
* timeline
* Zhurong

Aircraft|

* Ingenuity helicopter
* flights
* Mars 2020

| Failed
launches|

* Mars 1M No.1
* 1M No.2
* 2MV-4 No.1
* 2MV-3 No.1
* Mariner 3
* Mars 2M No.521
* 2M No.522
* Mariner 8
* Mars 3MS No.170
* Mars 96
* Fobos-Grunt / Yinghuo-1

|

Future|

| Planned|

* Mangalyaan-2 (2024)
* Europa Clipper (2024, flyby in 2025)
* EscaPADE (2024)
* Tera-hertz Explorer (TEREX) (mid 2020s)
* Kazachok (mid 2020s)
* Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) (2026)
* ExoMars (2028)
* Rosalind Franklin
* NASA-ESA Mars Sample Return
* Mars Sample Recovery Helicopters

|

Proposed|

* Biological Oxidant and Life Detection
* DePhine
* Icebreaker Life
* Mars Aerial and Ground Global Intelligent Explorer
* Mars Base Alpha
* Mars Exploration Ice Mapper
* Mars Geyser Hopper
* Mars-Grunt
* Mars Micro Orbiter
* MELOS rover
* MetNet
* Next Mars Orbiter
* PADME
* Phootprint
* Sky-Sailor

| Cancelled
proposals|

* Aerial Regional-scale Environmental Survey
* Astrobiology Field Laboratory
* Beagle 3
* Marsokhod
* Mars 4NM & 5NM
* Mars 5M (Mars-79)
* Mars-Aster
* Mars Astrobiology Explorer-Cacher (MAX-C)
* Mars One
* Mars Surveyor Lander
* Mars Telecommunications Orbiter
* NetLander
* Northern Light
* Red Dragon
* Sample Collection for Investigation of Mars (SCIM)
* Vesta
* Voyager Mars

|

Exploration|

| Concepts|

* Flyby
* Orbiter
* Landing
* Atmospheric entry
* Rover
* Aircraft
* Sample return
* Human mission
* Permanent settlement
* Colonization
* Terraforming

|

Strategies|

* Mars Scout Program
* Mars Exploration Program
* Mars Exploration Joint Initiative
* Mars Next Generation

Advocacy|

* The Mars Project
* The Case for Mars
* Inspiration Mars
* Mars Institute
* Mars Society
* Mars race

Missions are ordered by launch date. Sign † indicates failure en route or before intended mission data returned.

* v
* t
* e

NASA

Policy and history|

| History
(creation)|

* NACA (1915)
* National Aeronautics and Space Act (1958)
* Space Task Group (1958)
* Paine (1986)
* Rogers (1986)
* Ride (1987)
* Space Exploration Initiative (1989)
* Augustine (1990)
* U.S. National Space Policy (1996)
* CFUSAI (2002)
* CAIB (2003)
* Vision for Space Exploration (2004)
* Aldridge (2004)
* Augustine (2009)

|

General|

* Space Race
* Administrator and Deputy Administrator
* Chief Scientist
* Astronaut Corps
* Ranks and positions
* Chief
* Budget
* NASA research
* spinoff technologies
* NASA+
* NASA TV
* NASA Social
* Launch Services Program
* Mercury Control Center
* Manned Space Flight Network
* Kennedy Space Center
* Vehicle Assembly Building
* Launch Complex 39
* Launch Complex 48
* Launch Control Center
* Operations and Checkout Building
* Johnson Space Center
* Mission Control
* Lunar Sample Laboratory
* Science Mission Directorate

Human spaceflight
programs|

| Past|

* X-15 (suborbital)
* Mercury
* Gemini
* Apollo
* Skylab
* Apollo–Soyuz (with the Soviet space program)
* Space Shuttle
* Shuttle–Mir (with Roscosmos State Corporation)
* Constellation

|

Current|

* International Space Station
* Commercial Orbital Transportation Services
* Commercial Crew
* Orion
* Artemis
* Lunar Gateway

Robotic programs|

| Past|

* Hitchhiker
* Mariner
* Mariner Mark II
* MESUR
* Mars Surveyor '98
* New Millennium
* Lunar Orbiter
* Pioneer
* Planetary Observer
* Ranger
* Surveyor
* Viking
* Project Prometheus
* Mars Exploration
* Mars Exploration Rover

|

Current|

* Living With a Star
* Lunar Precursor Robotic Program
* Earth Observing System
* Great Observatories program
* Explorers
* Voyager
* Discovery
* New Frontiers
* Solar Terrestrial Probes
* Commercial Lunar Payload Services
* SIMPLEx

Individual featured
missions
(human and robotic)|

| Past|

* Apollo 11
* COBE
* Mercury 3
* Mercury-Atlas 6
* Magellan
* Pioneer 10
* Pioneer 11
* Galileo
* timeline
* GALEX
* GRAIL
* WMAP
* Space Shuttle
* Spitzer Space Telescope
* Sojourner rover
* Spirit rover
* LADEE
* MESSENGER
* Aquarius
* Cassini
* Dawn
* Kepler space telescope
* Opportunity rover
* timeline
* observed
* RHESSI
* InSight
* Ingenuity helicopter
* flights

|

Currently
operating|

* Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
* 2001 Mars Odyssey
* New Horizons
* International Space Station
* Hubble Space Telescope
* Swift
* THEMIS
* Mars Exploration Rover
* Curiosity rover
* timeline
* GOES 14
* Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
* GOES 15
* Van Allen Probes
* Solar Dynamics Observatory
* Juno
* Mars Science Laboratory
* timeline
* NuSTAR
* Voyager 1
* Voyager 2
* WISE
* MAVEN
* MMS
* OSIRIS-REx
* Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite
* Mars 2020
* Perseverance rover
* timeline
* James Webb Space Telescope
* timeline
* PACE

Future|

* Joint Polar Satellite System
* NISAR
* Europa Clipper
* Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope

Communications
and navigation|

* Near Earth Network
* Space Network
* Deep Space Network (Goldstone
* Madrid
* Canberra
* Space Flight Operations Facility)
* Deep Space Atomic Clock

NASA lists|

* Astronauts
* by name
* by year
* Gemini astronauts
* Apollo astronauts
* Space Shuttle crews
* NASA aircraft
* NASA missions
* uncrewed missions
* Apollo missions
* Space Shuttle missions
* United States rockets
* NASA cancellations
* NASA cameras on spacecraft

NASA images
and artwork|

* Earthrise
* The Blue Marble
* Family Portrait
* Pale Blue Dot
* Pillars of Creation
* Mystic Mountain
* Solar System Family Portrait
* The Day the Earth Smiled
* Fallen Astronaut
* Deep fields
* Lunar plaques
* Pioneer plaques
* Voyager Golden Record
* Apollo 11 goodwill messages
* NASA insignia
* Gemini and Apollo medallions
* Mission patches
* Hubble anniversary images

Related|

* "We choose to go to the Moon"
* Apollo 8 Genesis reading
* Apollo 15 postal covers incident
* Space Mirror Memorial
* The Astronaut Monument
* Lunar sample displays
* Moon rocks
* stolen or missing
* U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame
* Space program on U.S. stamps
* Apollo 17 Moon mice
* Moon tree
* Other primates in space
* NASA International Space Apps Challenge
* Astronauts Day

* Category
* Commons

* v
* t
* e

21st-century space probes

Active space probes
(deep space missions)|

| Sun|

* Parker Solar Probe
* Solar Orbiter

|

Moon|

* ARTEMIS
* CAPSTONE
* Chandrayaan-2
* Chang'e 3
* Chang'e 4 (Yutu-2 rover)
* Chang'e 5
* Danuri
* Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
* Queqiao
* SLIM

Mars|

* Emirates Mars Mission
* ExoMars TGO
* Mars Express
* 2001 Mars Odyssey
* MAVEN
* MRO
* MSL Curiosity rover
* Tianwen-1
* Mars 2020
* Perseverance rover

Other planets|

* BepiColombo
* Mercury
* Akatsuki
* Venus
* Juno
* Jupiter
* Juice
* Jupiter

Minor planets|

* Chang'e 2
* Hayabusa2 / MINERVA-II
* Lucy
* New Horizons
* OSIRIS-REx
* Psyche

Interstellar space|

* Voyager 1
* Voyager 2

Completed after 2000
(by termination date)|

| 2000s|

* 2001
* NEAR Shoemaker
* Deep Space 1
* 2003
* Pioneer 10
* Galileo
* Nozomi
* 2004
* Genesis
* 2005
* Huygens
* 2006
* Mars Global Surveyor
* 2008
* Phoenix
* 2009
* Chang'e 1
* Ulysses
* Chandrayaan-1
* SELENE
* LCROSS

|

2010s|

* 2010
* Hayabusa
* MER Spirit rover
* 2011
* Stardust
* 2012
* GRAIL
* 2013
* Deep Impact
* 2014
* LADEE
* Venus Express
* Chang'e 5-T1
* 2015
* MESSENGER
* PROCYON
* IKAROS
* 2016
* Rosetta / Philae
* Yutu rover
* ExoMars Schiaparelli
* 2017
* LISA Pathfinder
* Cassini
* 2018
* MASCOT
* Dawn
* Longjiang-1
* 2019
* MarCO
* MER Opportunity rover
* Beresheet
* Longjiang-2
* Vikram / Pragyan rover

2020s|

* 2020
* Chang'e 5
* 2022
* Double Asteroid Redirection Test
* Mangalyaan
* InSight
* 2023
* Hakuto-R Mission 1
* Luna 25
* Chandrayaan-3
* Zhurong rover
* 2024
* Ingenuity helicopter
* Peregrine Mission One

* List of Solar System probes
* List of lunar probes
* List of extraterrestrial orbiters
* List of space telescopes

* v
* t
* e

2020 in space

* « 2019

2021 »

Space probe
launches |

* Solar Orbiter (Feb 2020)
* Hope (Jul 2020)
* Tianwen-1 (Jul 2020)
* Mars 2020 (Jul 2020)
* Perseverance rover
* Mars Helicopter Ingenuity
* Chang'e 5 (lunar sample return mission; Nov 2020)

Impact events|

* 2020 China bolide

Selected
NEOs|

* Asteroid close approaches
* 594913 ꞌAylóꞌchaxnim
* 2020 BX12
* 2020 CW
* 2020 CD3 (temporary satellite)
* (52768) 1998 OR2
* 2020 HS7
* 2020 JJ
* 2020 LD
* (163348) 2002 NN4
* 2020 OY4
* 2020 QG
* 2011 ES4
* 2018 VP1
* 2020 SO (space debris)
* 2020 SW
* 2020 SL1
* 2020 UA
* 2020 VV
* 2020 VT4
* (153201) 2000 WO107
* (501647) 2014 SD224
* 2020 XL5

Exoplanets |

* AU Mic b
* Gliese 229 Ac
* Gliese 414
* Ab
* Ac
* Gliese 433
* b
* c
* d
* GJ 1151 b radio emissions
* K2-315b
* Kepler-1649c
* KOI-456.04
* Lacaille 9352
* b
* c
* M51-ULS-1b
* OGLE-2016-BLG-1928 (rogue planet)
* Tau Ceti j (predicted)
* TOI-561
* b
* c
* d
* e
* TOI-700
* b
* c
* d
* TOI-732
* b
* c
* TOI-1338 b
* TOI-1339
* b
* c
* d
* TYC 8998-760-1 c
* WD 1856+534 b

Discoveries|

* Betelgeuse dimming
* FRB 180916 location and periodicity
* Radcliffe wave
* Ophiuchus Supercluster explosion
* PSO J03094+27 (distant blazar)
* 2MASS J1047+21 wind speed measurements
* SGR 1935+2154 (soft gamma ray repeater)
* HR 6819 black hole hypothesis
* PHL 293B ending of P Cygni profile hydrogen emission lines
* Swift J1818.0–1607 (young magnetar)
* GW190814 (announced)
* South Pole Wall
* GW190521 (announced)
* Phosphine detection in the atmosphere of Venus
* Water detection on the sunlit surface of the Moon

Comets |

* C/2019 Y4 (ATLAS)
* C/2017 T2 (PANSTARRS)
* C/2020 F8 (SWAN)
* C/2019 U6 (LEMMON)
* C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE)
* 2P/Encke
* 88P/Howell
* 156P/Russell–LINEAR

Space
exploration|

* Spitzer retirement (Jan 2020)
* BepiColombo (Earth gravity assist; Apr 2020, Venus gravity assist; Oct 2020)
* OSIRIS-REx (sample collection from asteroid Bennu; Oct 2020)
* Hayabusa2 (sample return from asteroid Ryugu; Dec 2020)
* Chang'e 5 (lunar sample return; Dec 2020)

* Outer space portal
* Category:2019 in outer space — Category:2020 in outer space — Category:2021 in outer space

* v
* t
* e

2021 in space

* « 2020

2022 »

Space probe and
telescope launches |

* Tiangong space station Tianhe (April 2021)
* Lucy (Oct 2021)
* DART / LICIACube (Nov 2021)
* James Webb Space Telescope (Dec 2021)

Impact events|

* Winchcombe meteorite

Selected NEOs|

* Asteroid close approaches
* 2021 AV7
* 2020 XR
* 2016 DV1
* 2021 DW1
* 99942 Apophis
* (231937) 2001 FO32
* 2021 GW4
* 2021 PH27
* 2016 AJ193
* 2021 SG
* 2021 TP21
* 2021 UA1
* 2019 XS
* 3361 Orpheus
* 1994 WR12
* 4660 Nereus
* (163899) 2003 SD220
* 2018 AH

Exoplanets |

* Alpha Centauri Ab (unconfirmed)
* COCONUTS-2b
* Gliese 486
* HD 108236 f
* HD 110082 b
* Kepler-1704b
* KOI-5Ab
* L 98-59
* e
* f?
* Lalande 21185 c
* Lambda Serpentis b
* NGTS-13b
* NGTS-14Ab
* OGLE-2019-BLG-0960Lb
* PDS 70c circumplanetary disk
* TIC 172900988 b
* TOI-178
* b
* c
* d
* e
* f
* g
* TOI-755
* b
* c
* Vega b (unconfirmed)
* YSES 2 b

Discoveries|

* QSO J0313–1806 (distant quasar)
* ID2299 (elliptical galaxy)
* TIC 168789840 sextuple system
* V723 Mon black hole candidate
* 2018 AG37 (TNO)
* 2021 DR15 (TNO)
* ALESS 073.1 (spiral galaxy)
* PJ352–15 astrophysical jet
* 2MASS J0348−6022 (rapidly-rotating brown dwarf)
* ZTF J1901+1458 (massive white dwarf)
* WISE 1534–1043 (brown dwarf)
* Andy's object (radio source)

Comets |

* C/2021 A1 (Leonard)
* C/2021 J1 (Maury-Attard)
* (248370) 2005 QN173
* 8P/Tuttle
* C/2014 OG392 (PanSTARRS)
* C/2014 UN271 (Bernardinelli-Bernstein)
* C/2021 T4 (Lemmon)
* P/2021 U3 (Attard-Maury)

Space
exploration|

* Hope Mars mission (Mars orbit insertion: Feb 2021)
* Mars 2020 (Mars orbit insertion: Feb 2021; Perseverance Mars landing: Feb 2021)
* Tianwen-1 (Mars orbit insertion: Feb 2021; Zhurong rover Mars landing: May 2021)

* Outer space portal
* Category:2020 in outer space — Category:2021 in outer space — Category:2022 in outer space

Portals:

* Astronomy
* Biology
* Spaceflight

*[no.]: number
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template