In a stunning engineering feat, Perseverance, the largest
and most complex Mars rover yet, landed successfully on Mars on the floor of
Jezero crater on February 18, 2021. Its mission is ambitious: seek signs of
ancient life and collect samples for future return to Earth. Perseverance and
its predecessor Curiosity have and continue to revolutionize our view of the Red
Planet, and returned samples just might revolutionize our view of life itself. As a geologist
on both mission teams, Kirsten will share the motivation and context for
these missions, our new and evolving understanding of our neighboring planet, and how
it teaches us about our own world, along with resources
to share the excitement with students.
SPEAKERS:
Kirsten Siebach (Rice University: Houston, TX)