4 Records NASA's Mars Perseverance Rover Broke in Its First Year on Mars

February 18 marks one year since NASA's groundbreaking Perseverance rover touched down on the surface of Mars, marking the start of a new mission to better understand Earth's cold, red planetary neighbor.

Coming nearly 10 years on the heels of its predecessor Curiosity, Perseverance has made use of more advanced technology than any rover NASA has sent to Mars before.

"We were handed a huge challenge by NASA of designing a rover and operation system that had to accomplish two to three times as much as Curiosity in the same amount of time," Jennifer Trosper, Perseverance project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told Newsweek. "The team designed, built and delivered a rover and operational system that is far and away the most complex, capable, effective and efficient system we've ever sent to another planet… part of the test and operations occurring during a global pandemic.

"Over the course of one year, Perseverance doubled the number of samples acquired—eight samples versus four for Curiosity—and double distance driven at around 2.2 miles versus 1.1 miles for Curiosity."

Thanks to its suite of scientific instruments, observational tools and more, Perseverance's mission has broken and even created a number of other records in the 12 months it has spent exploring Mars so far. Below, Newsweek has compiled a few.

Furthest Distance Traveled in a Day

One of Perseverance's most recent records, the car-sized rover set the bar for the furthest distance ever traveled in a single day in early February—245.76 meters (806 feet).

NASA chalked the new record down to Perseverance's self-driving function. Perseverance's official Twitter account stated: "Just set a new Martian record of 243.3 meters, and then yesterday, another: 245.76 meters. Places to go, rocks to see!"

In contrast, the previous record set by the Opportunity rover was 214 meters (702 feet).

Furthest (and Only) Distance Flown on Mars

One of the most novel aspects of Perseverance's mission was to have it carry the Ingenuity helicopter to the Red Planet. Ingenuity was intended as a technology demonstration to prove that flying on Mars was viable, and it has been successful.

All in all, the little helicopter has flown around 2.2 miles over Mars' surface for a total of around half an hour.

On February 8, Ingenuity completed its 19th flight and its first since December 15, 2021, following a delay due to bad weather. At other times the helicopter has reached a record height of 12 meters (39 feet) and covered horizontal distances of 625 meters (over 2,050 feet) in a single flight.

NASA thinks helicopters like Ingenuity might one day give scientists a new perspective on Mars' geology and be used as robotic scouts or even carry scientific payloads.

Most (and Only) Oxygen Extracted From Mars' Atmosphere

In another example of Perseverance setting rather than breaking a record, the rover used its on-board Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE) instrument to convert some of Mars' carbon dioxide-rich atmosphere into oxygen. This feat was carried out for the first time in April 2021.

The instrument works by separating oxygen atoms from carbon dioxide atoms by heating the gas to around 1,470 degrees Fahrenheit.

Scientists hope that technology demonstrated by MOXIE could one day help future planetary explorers convert carbon dioxide into more useful things like rocket propellant, breathable air, or even water.

Heaviest Rover Sent to Mars

Perseverance is a bit weightier than its predecessor, coming in at 1,025 kilograms or 2,259 pounds compared to 899 kilograms or 1,981 pounds for Curiosity, according to the California Institute of Technology's Caltech magazine.

This is due to Perseverance's large suite of instruments. The newest rover has a total of 23 cameras, two microphones, and a heavier arm that weighs more than Curiosity's since it carries larger instruments and a larger drill for coring rocks and looking for signs of past life.

Its body is also slightly bulkier, measuring about 12 centimeters (5 inches) longer.