{
  "id": "nasa-perseverance-rover",
  "title": "Perseverance",
  "maker": "NASA / JPL",
  "maker_type": "Space agency",
  "kind": "mission",
  "category": "rovers",
  "page": "https://spacemushroom.com/space-products/nasa-perseverance-rover/",
  "website": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
  "summary": "NASA's Mars 2020 rover, a car-sized sample-collecting rover with aluminium wheels, titanium legs and tubes, an MMRTG power source and a tiled PICA heat shield.",
  "application": "Perseverance explores Jezero Crater on Mars to look for signs of ancient life and to cache rock and regolith samples in sealed tubes for a possible return to Earth. It carries a suite of cameras, spectrometers and a drill on a robotic arm. The materials story is aluminium and titanium for mobility, ablative PICA for entry and a plutonium-fuelled thermoelectric generator for power.",
  "story": {
    "headline": "Perseverance is the NASA rover looking for signs of ancient life in Jezero Crater on Mars.",
    "intro": [
      "Perseverance is about the size of a car and was built by NASA with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. It landed in Jezero Crater on 18 February 2021. It caches samples of rock and regolith, the loose surface material, in sealed tubes for a possible return to Earth.",
      "Each wheel is machined from a block of aluminium and fitted with curved titanium spokes, and the sample tubes are made chiefly of titanium. A heat shield of PICA tiles, which wear away as they heat, protected the rover on entry. A plutonium-fuelled generator supplies its power."
    ],
    "built": [
      {
        "title": "Wheels and legs",
        "text": "The six wheels each have their own motor and measure 52.5 cm across. The wheel body is machined out of a block of flight-grade aluminium, with curved titanium spokes for springy support. The legs are titanium tubing, formed by the process used for high-end mountain bike frames.",
        "parts": [
          "Wheel body (6)",
          "Wheel spokes",
          "Legs / suspension tubing"
        ]
      },
      {
        "title": "Sample tubes",
        "text": "The 43 sample tubes are made chiefly of titanium. Each weighs less than 57 grams and has a white coating on the outside. The rover's drill uses interchangeable bits, including coring bits, regolith bits and an abrader.",
        "parts": [
          "Sample tubes (43)"
        ]
      },
      {
        "title": "Heat shield",
        "text": "The heat shield is a sandwich of aluminium honeycomb with graphite fibre facesheets. It is covered in PICA tiles, which are carbon fibre impregnated with phenolic resin, and a silicone coating is sprayed over the surface.",
        "parts": [
          "Heat shield structure",
          "Heat shield ablator tiles",
          "Heat shield surface coating"
        ]
      },
      {
        "title": "Power source",
        "text": "The MMRTG is a plutonium-fuelled thermoelectric generator. It turns the heat of 4.8 kg of plutonium dioxide into electricity using 768 thermocouples of lead telluride and TAGS, and iridium cladding protects the fuel. It gave about 110 W at launch, and two lithium-ion batteries meet peak demands.",
        "parts": [
          "MMRTG heat source fuel",
          "MMRTG thermoelectric couples (768)",
          "GPHS fuel cladding",
          "Rechargeable batteries (2)"
        ]
      }
    ],
    "materials": [
      {
        "name": "Aluminium",
        "mid": "aluminium",
        "where": "The six wheel bodies, each machined from a block of flight-grade aluminium. The alloy is not named."
      },
      {
        "name": "Titanium",
        "mid": "titanium",
        "where": "The wheel spokes, the leg tubing and the 43 sample tubes, which are made chiefly of titanium."
      },
      {
        "name": "PICA",
        "mid": "pica",
        "where": "The ablator tiles on the heat shield, made of carbon fibre impregnated with phenolic resin."
      },
      {
        "name": "Plutonium dioxide",
        "mid": "plutonium-dioxide-fuel",
        "where": "The ceramic fuel of the power generator, 4.8 kg in total."
      },
      {
        "name": "Lead telluride and TAGS",
        "mid": "pbte-tags-thermoelectric",
        "where": "The 768 thermocouples in the generator, which turn its heat into electricity."
      },
      {
        "name": "Iridium",
        "mid": "iridium",
        "where": "The metal cladding around the plutonium fuel."
      }
    ],
    "connections": "NASA and its Jet Propulsion Laboratory built Perseverance. Its wheel skins are almost a millimetre thicker than those on the Curiosity rover. The thermal protection on its entry vehicle uses the same materials and thicknesses as the Mars Science Laboratory mission, with no major changes.",
    "unknown": "NASA does not state what the rover's body, mast, robotic arm, electronics and instrument housings are made of. The aluminium alloy of the wheels, the grade of the titanium and the white coating on the sample tubes are not named either.",
    "facts": [
      {
        "label": "Mass",
        "value": "1,025 kg (2,260 lb)"
      },
      {
        "label": "Wheels",
        "value": "6 wheels, each with its own motor, 52.5 cm diameter"
      },
      {
        "label": "Power",
        "value": "About 110 W at launch from an MMRTG, plus two Li-ion batteries"
      },
      {
        "label": "Sample tubes",
        "value": "43 tubes"
      },
      {
        "label": "Landing",
        "value": "Jezero Crater, 18 February 2021"
      }
    ]
  },
  "specifications": [
    {
      "label": "Mass",
      "value": "1,025 kg (2,260 lb)",
      "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
      "quote": "2,260 pounds / 1,025 kilograms"
    },
    {
      "label": "Wheels",
      "value": "6 wheels, each with its own motor, 52.5 cm diameter",
      "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
      "quote": "Perseverance has six wheels, each with its own motor."
    },
    {
      "label": "Wheel diameter",
      "value": "52.5 cm (20.7 in)",
      "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
      "quote": "20.7 inches (52.5 centimeters) in diameter"
    },
    {
      "label": "Power",
      "value": "About 110 W at launch from an MMRTG, plus two Li-ion batteries",
      "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
      "quote": "About 110 watts at launch, declining a few percent per year."
    },
    {
      "label": "Sample tubes",
      "value": "43 tubes",
      "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
      "quote": "43 sample tubes waiting to be filled"
    },
    {
      "label": "Landing",
      "value": "Jezero Crater, 18 February 2021",
      "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
      "quote": "delivered the Perseverance rover to Jezero crater on Mars on February 18, 2021",
      "quote_check": "not matched on the source page"
    },
    {
      "label": "Entry heat shield",
      "value": "4.5 m diameter, 70-degree spherecone aeroshell (MSL heritage design)",
      "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20170011049",
      "quote": "The entry vehicle was a 70-degree 4.5-m diameter spherecone",
      "quote_check": "not matched on the source page"
    }
  ],
  "features": [
    {
      "text": "Six-wheel rocker-bogie mobility",
      "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
      "quote": "Perseverance uses a \"rocker-bogie\" suspension system"
    },
    {
      "text": "Interchangeable drill bits for coring and abrasion",
      "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
      "quote": "A suite of interchangeable bits: coring bits, regolith bits and an abrader."
    },
    {
      "text": "Caches rock samples in tubes for possible return to Earth",
      "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
      "quote": "43 sample tubes waiting to be filled"
    },
    {
      "text": "Entry vehicle TPS re-used MSL materials and thicknesses",
      "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
      "quote": "No major changes to the TPS materials and thicknesses compared to MSL",
      "quote_check": "not matched on the source page"
    }
  ],
  "parts": [
    {
      "assembly": "Mobility (wheels and suspension)",
      "parts": [
        {
          "part": "Wheel body (6)",
          "material": "aluminium (flight-grade, alloy not named)",
          "form": "machined from one block",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": "Wheel 52.5 cm diameter",
          "quote": "machined out of a block of flight-grade aluminum and equipped with titanium spokes",
          "source_url": "https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-perseverance-mars-rover-gets-its-wheels-and-air-brakes/",
          "profile": "aluminium",
          "mid": "aluminium"
        },
        {
          "part": "Wheel spokes",
          "material": "titanium",
          "form": "curved spokes",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "curved titanium spokes for springy support",
          "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
          "profile": "titanium",
          "mid": "titanium"
        },
        {
          "part": "Legs / suspension tubing",
          "material": "titanium",
          "form": "tubing",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "Titanium tubing formed with the same process in high-end mountain bike frames.",
          "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
          "profile": "titanium",
          "mid": "titanium"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "assembly": "Sample caching",
      "parts": [
        {
          "part": "Sample tubes (43)",
          "material": "titanium (chiefly)",
          "form": "tube",
          "finish": "white exterior coating (material not named)",
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "Made chiefly of titanium, each sample tube weighs less than 2 ounces (57 grams).",
          "source_url": "https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/a-martian-roundtrip-nasas-perseverance-rover-sample-tubes/",
          "profile": "titanium",
          "mid": "titanium"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "assembly": "Entry, descent and landing: heat shield",
      "parts": [
        {
          "part": "Heat shield structure",
          "material": "aluminium honeycomb with graphite-fibre facesheets",
          "form": "sandwich",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "The heatshield structure was made of an aluminum honeycomb sandwich with graphite fiber facesheets.",
          "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "aluminium-honeycomb-core"
        },
        {
          "part": "Heat shield facesheets",
          "material": "graphite fibre (carbon fibre)",
          "form": "facesheet plies",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "aluminum honeycomb sandwich with graphite fiber facesheets",
          "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
          "profile": "carbon-fibre",
          "mid": "carbon-fibre"
        },
        {
          "part": "Heat shield ablator tiles",
          "material": "PICA (phenolic impregnated carbon ablator)",
          "form": "tiles",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "PICA is made of a carbon fiber preform impregnated with phenolic resin",
          "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "pica"
        },
        {
          "part": "Tile bond line",
          "material": "HT-424 paste adhesive",
          "form": "paste adhesive",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "PICA tiles were bonded to the structure using HT-424 paste adhesive.",
          "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "ht-424-adhesive"
        },
        {
          "part": "Tile gap filler",
          "material": "RTV-560 silicone",
          "form": "gap filler",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "The gaps between tiles were filled with Room Temperature Vulcanized (RTV-560) silicone adhesive.",
          "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "rtv-560-silicone"
        },
        {
          "part": "Heat shield surface coating",
          "material": "NuSil CV-1144-0 silicone coating",
          "form": "spray coating",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "sprayed with a silicone coating (NuSil CV-1144-0)",
          "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "nusil-cv-1144-0-coating"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "assembly": "Entry, descent and landing: backshell",
      "parts": [
        {
          "part": "Backshell structure",
          "material": "aluminium honeycomb with graphite facesheets",
          "form": "sandwich",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "The backshell structure was made of an aluminum honeycomb sandwich with varying number of graphite facesheet plies.",
          "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "aluminium-honeycomb-core"
        },
        {
          "part": "Backshell ablator",
          "material": "SLA-561V",
          "form": "hand-packed in Flexcore honeycomb, 1.27 cm nominal",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "SLA-561V is made of RTV silicone resin with granulated cork, silica and phenolic microballoons",
          "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "sla-561v"
        },
        {
          "part": "Parachute closeout cone, lid and backshell interface plate TPS",
          "material": "Acusil-II",
          "form": "hand-packed and machined",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "Acusil-II on the BIP, PCC cone, and PCC lid",
          "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "acusil-ii"
        },
        {
          "part": "Backshell paint",
          "material": "white paint (type not named)",
          "form": null,
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "The material was then sprayed with a white paint",
          "source_url": "https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20220006688",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": null
        },
        {
          "part": "Parachute",
          "material": "nylon, Technora and Kevlar fibres",
          "form": "fibre (mass quote covers parachute and its air-brake hardware as stated)",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "194 pounds (88 kilograms) of nylon, Technora and Kevlar fibers",
          "source_url": "https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-perseverance-mars-rover-gets-its-wheels-and-air-brakes/",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "nylon-technora-kevlar-parachute-fibres"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "assembly": "Power: MMRTG",
      "parts": [
        {
          "part": "MMRTG heat source fuel",
          "material": "plutonium dioxide (Pu-238)",
          "form": "ceramic fuel",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "contains a total of 10.6 pounds (4.8 kilograms) of plutonium dioxide fuel",
          "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/mmrtg-factsheet-updated-5-18-20-1.pdf",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "plutonium-dioxide-fuel"
        },
        {
          "part": "MMRTG thermoelectric couples (768)",
          "material": "lead telluride / TAGS (tellurium-antimony-germanium-silver)",
          "form": "768 thermocouples",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "Lead telluride (PbTe)//Germanium telluride/Silver Antimony telluride (TAGS)",
          "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/mmrtg-factsheet-updated-5-18-20-1.pdf",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "pbte-tags-thermoelectric"
        },
        {
          "part": "GPHS fuel cladding",
          "material": "iridium metal",
          "form": "clad",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "iridium metal cladding, graphite sleeves that protect the fuel clads",
          "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/mmrtg-factsheet-updated-5-18-20-1.pdf",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "iridium"
        },
        {
          "part": "GPHS graphite sleeves",
          "material": "graphite",
          "form": "sleeve",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "graphite sleeves that protect the fuel clads",
          "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/mmrtg-factsheet-updated-5-18-20-1.pdf",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "graphite"
        },
        {
          "part": "GPHS aeroshell box",
          "material": "carbon-fibre material (carbon-bonded carbon fibre per figure labels)",
          "form": "aeroshell box around each of eight GPHS modules",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "the rugged carbon-fiber material that forms the aeroshell",
          "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/mmrtg-factsheet-updated-5-18-20-1.pdf",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "carbon-bonded-carbon-fibre"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "assembly": "Power: batteries",
      "parts": [
        {
          "part": "Rechargeable batteries (2)",
          "material": "lithium-ion",
          "form": "battery",
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "Two lithium-ion rechargeable batteries to meet peak demands of rover activities",
          "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": "lithium-ion-cell"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "assembly": "Science payload",
      "parts": [
        {
          "part": "SuperCam (mast head)",
          "material": null,
          "form": null,
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "SuperCam identifies minerals and rock compositions.",
          "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": null
        },
        {
          "part": "SHERLOC / WATSON, PIXL, drill (turret)",
          "material": null,
          "form": null,
          "finish": null,
          "standard": null,
          "hardware_ref": null,
          "quote": "SHERLOC and WATSON, PIXL, GDRT (Gaseous Dust Removal Tool), Ground Contact Sensor, Drill.",
          "source_url": "https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-2020-perseverance/rover-components/",
          "profile": null,
          "mid": null
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "materials": [
    {
      "id": "aluminium",
      "name": "aluminium (flight-grade, alloy not named)",
      "material_page": "https://spacemushroom.com/profiles/aluminium/"
    },
    {
      "id": "titanium",
      "name": "titanium (chiefly)",
      "material_page": "https://spacemushroom.com/profiles/titanium/"
    },
    {
      "id": "aluminium-honeycomb-core",
      "name": "aluminium honeycomb with graphite facesheets",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "carbon-fibre",
      "name": "graphite fibre (carbon fibre)",
      "material_page": "https://spacemushroom.com/profiles/carbon-fibre/"
    },
    {
      "id": "pica",
      "name": "PICA (phenolic impregnated carbon ablator)",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "ht-424-adhesive",
      "name": "HT-424 paste adhesive",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "rtv-560-silicone",
      "name": "RTV-560 silicone",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "nusil-cv-1144-0-coating",
      "name": "NuSil CV-1144-0 silicone coating",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "sla-561v",
      "name": "SLA-561V",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "acusil-ii",
      "name": "Acusil-II",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "nylon-technora-kevlar-parachute-fibres",
      "name": "nylon, Technora and Kevlar fibres",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "plutonium-dioxide-fuel",
      "name": "plutonium dioxide (Pu-238)",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "pbte-tags-thermoelectric",
      "name": "lead telluride / TAGS (tellurium-antimony-germanium-silver)",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "iridium",
      "name": "iridium metal",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "graphite",
      "name": "graphite",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "carbon-bonded-carbon-fibre",
      "name": "carbon-fibre material (carbon-bonded carbon fibre per figure labels)",
      "material_page": null
    },
    {
      "id": "lithium-ion-cell",
      "name": "lithium-ion",
      "material_page": null
    }
  ],
  "standards": [],
  "relations": [],
  "not_published": "Chassis, mast, robotic arm, instrument housings, electronics and the MOXIE experiment have no stated materials in the sources read. Parachute row quote also covers other fibres as stated by JPL; it gives no split by part.",
  "depth": "partial",
  "photos": [
    {
      "file": "products/context/nasa-perseverance-rover-1.jpg",
      "alt": "Perseverance rover selfie at Rochette rock on Mars, mast camera head, robotic arm and wheels in a rocky landscape",
      "long": "Perseverance rover selfie at Rochette rock on Mars, mast camera head, robotic arm and wheels in a rocky landscape",
      "kind": "product",
      "credit": "NASA (public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)",
      "license": "Public domain",
      "page_url": "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PIA24836_Perseverance%27s_Selfie_at_Rochette.jpg"
    },
    {
      "file": "products/context/nasa-perseverance-rover-2.jpg",
      "alt": "Perseverance rover during its first test drive in a JPL clean room, six wheels on blue ramps, mast with SuperCam",
      "long": "Perseverance rover during its first test drive in a JPL clean room, six wheels on blue ramps, mast with SuperCam, technicians in cleanroom suits",
      "kind": "product",
      "credit": "NASA/JPL-Caltech (via Wikimedia Commons / NASA Photojournal)",
      "license": "Public domain",
      "page_url": "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PIA23499-Mars2020Rover-FirstTestDrive-20191217a.jpg"
    },
    {
      "file": "products/context/nasa-perseverance-rover-3.jpg",
      "alt": "Perseverance rover selfie on Mars beside a rock outcrop with the Sun low behind it",
      "long": "Perseverance rover selfie on Mars beside a rock outcrop with the Sun low behind it",
      "kind": "product",
      "credit": "NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS (public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)",
      "license": "Public domain",
      "page_url": "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Perseverance_Stuns_in_New_Selfie.png"
    }
  ],
  "context": {
    "size": [],
    "mass": [],
    "orbit": [
      "Deep space"
    ]
  },
  "licence": "Product data CC BY 4.0, cite Space Mushroom. Photos keep their own licences, given per photo.",
  "mcp": "https://spacemushroom.com/mcp"
}