This success comes after seven months of space travel, decades of work and billions of dollars to answer a single question: has life one day existed elsewhere than on earth? By the way, it is the mission of Perseverance.
The NASA robot landed on March, Thursday, February 18, shortly before 10 p.m. It is a first in the history of man.
Cry of joy sounded in the Pasadena control room, California. According to several American media, the maneuver was perilous. The chosen place, the Jezero crater, is the most dangerous landing site ever tried, due to its relief.
NASA quickly communicated a photo taken by the rover on site. “Hello the world. My first view of the house which will be mine forever, ”tweeted the official rover account to accompany the image in black and white, on which we can see the shadow of the vehicle projected on the ground.
“I arrived safely on Mars. Perseverance will open all the borders to you,” said the robot.
Among the team of engineers behind this highly expected scientific feat, a Tunisian, Mohamed Abid, deputy engineer in mechanics, who works on the Mission March 2020, within the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) of NASA.
Invited Thursday, February 18, 2021 on Express FM, Mohamed Abid indicated that the atmosphere within the team is tinged with joy and tension, a few hours before the landing of the rover.