NASA names new Mars rover 'Perseverance' five months before launch

National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA) on March 6 announced the name of its rover that is headed for Mars in July this year. NASA took to its official Twitter handle where it said that the rover that will be a key component for its Mars 2020 mission has been named Perseverance. The announcement came months after NASA conducted a poll and asked people to vote for the option they think will be best for naming the Mars rover. NASA's list of options for names included Clarity, Vision, Promise, Tenacity, Ingenuity, Courage, Fortitude, and Endurance. 

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Perseverance rover

According to NASA's official website, "The Mars 2020 rover, Perseverance, is based on the Mars Science Laboratory's Curiosity rover configuration. It is car-sized, about 10 feet long (not including the arm), 9 feet wide, and 7 feet tall (about 3 meters long, 2.7 meters wide, and 2.2 meters tall). But at 2,260 pounds (1,025 kilograms), it weighs less than a compact car. In some sense, the rover parts are similar to what any living creature would need to keep it "alive" and able to explore."

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As per NASA, the rover will carry seven instruments to conduct unprecedented experiments and test new technology on the Red Planet. The rover will be onboard of the Mars 2020 mission flight ULA Atlas 541, which will be launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. The rover will spend at least two Earth years on the Red Planet, which is about one year on Mars. According to NASA, the Perseverance rover is scheduled to land on Mars in February 2021  at the site of an ancient river delta in a lake that once filled Jezero Crater.

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Image Credit: NASA/Webpage