Social media was abuzz with the recent finding of a mysterious object on Mars. On July 12, the NASA Rover first detected the debris on the front side of its hazard avoidance camera.
Space watchers were intrigued by the finding of a tangled object. With the discovery by the Mars Perseverance rover, NASA has many posting tongue-in-cheek comments on social media, such as Italian dining quality on the Red Planet.
A plausible explanation seemed more practical. It is most likely remnants of components used in February 2021 when the robotic explorer to Mars was lowered.
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s spokesman told AFP they were discussing where the object was from. The general speculation is that the debris is either from the landing system that lowers the rover on the surface or a parachute cord piece. The spokesman added that, as of now, they do not have confirmation whether it is one or the other.
The Debris bundle was spotted on July 12 by the front left side of the camera. Still, when Perseverance returned to that spot four days later, the debris was gone. It was most probably carried to a different place by wind. It is similar to the thermal blanket piece that might have come when the rocket-powered landing system was spotted last month.
Scientific Expedition Leftovers
The accumulated trash is a small price to pay for scientific expeditions. The Mars Perseverance Rover is a noble scientific effort to find traces of biosignature that could give evidence of ancient microbial life’s existence on Mars. For future habitants of Mars, these items may prove to be valuable artifacts one day.
Astronomer Stuart Atkinson in a tweet said that in about a hundred years from now, Martians would be collecting all these items and making them historical jewelry or putting them on display in museums.
