Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover nuclear power

The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover‘s MMRTG is essentially a nuclear power source. The radioisotope material is plutonium-238. The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover’s MMRTG can convert heat from the natural decay of plutonium-238 to electricity, and the power produced is 110 W at the beginning of the mission. Then each year the power will drop a few percent. But since the plutonium-238 is only enough for one and a half Mars year (or three Earth years), the drop will not make a big impact on the mission.

For our 1:2 Peserverance Mars Rover Replica, you can use rechargeable batteries or plug them into the wall. It won’t be nuclear power. With batteries, the Perseverance Mars Rover Replica can operate for around 2 hours.

Unlike on Earth, you will not get a steady sunlight accumulation on Mars, and the daily and seasonal temperature fluctuation is too abrupt. Therefore, it will be unwise and unpractical to use solar panels for the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover, at least not at the moment. This makes the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover’s MMRTG perfect for the space mission.

The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover’s MMRTG is very small but it can produce significantly more energy compared with other forms of available power supplies. Although nuclear power might sound dangerous, protections are made to ensure safety. First of all, the plutonium-238 is not weapon-grade. Second of all, the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover’s MMRTG technology has already been used in numerous space missions, such as the Curiosity rover mission, the Apollo mission, the Viking mission, and many more for over 50 years. Therefore, it has been proved as a reliable power source for space missions. Lastly, the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover’s MMRTG is designed to have many layers of protective materials, so that under various extreme conditions, the plutonium-238 inside will still be contained and safe.

The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover’s MMRTG is able to generate electricity continuously no matter the condition. The sufficient amount of energy that the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover’s MMRTG produces also makes it convenient for scientists to work with Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover no matter day or night.

Our 1:2 Peserverance Mars Rover Replica will perfectly replicate the structure appearance of the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover’s MMRTG. If you are interested in our Peserverance Mars Rover Replica, you can check out [1:2 Perseverance Mars Rover Replica Design and Building Diary].

While the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover is performing all the system checks, the Ingenuity Helicopter is also doing its part of the jobs. Giving the low temperature on Mars (it could go down below 90°C at night), keeping all the electronic systems and its mechanical structure warm is crucial. That is why when the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover first arrived, the Ingenuity Helicopter stayed attached to the belly of the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover till it was sufficiently charged from the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover. Even after the Ingenuity Helicopter disengaged from the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover it still carries backup batteries that were charged from the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover.

We are building a 1:2 Peseverance Mars Rover Replica, which will perfectly replicate the appearance structure of the real Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover in very fine details, but with no actual scientific functions. The Ingenuity Helicopter is also in our plan to replicate. The difference between our Mars Rover Replica and Ingenuity Helicopter replica, on Earth, and the real Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover and Ingenuity Helicopter, on Mars, is we won’t need to keep them warm the whole time. The motors won’t run so heavily so you won’t need to worry about keeping them cool either.

After parting with the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover, the rover moved far from the Ingenuity Helicopter so that Ingenuity would receive enough solar power. That is why the first night on its own would be very important, which is one of the milestones set for the Ingenuity Helicopter.

The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover mainly runs on nuclear power, and the Ingenuity Helicopter runs on solar power, but for our Mars Rover Replica and the Ingenuity Helicopter replica, they will run on rechargeable batteries and an external power supply.

Unlike the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover, the Ingenuity Helicopter does not carry any science instruments and its purpose on this mission is not for scientific study, but to only show the possibility of exploring a planet with an aircraft, even though it is a small one. It is beyond excitement that the Ingenuity Helicopter spent the first night on its own successfully. Now the team will prepare for the first flight.

Just like the Ingenuity Helicopter, our Mars Rover Replica also doesn’t carry any science instruments either, but our Mars Rover Replica will have all the scientific instruments’ appearance structures. If you are interested in our Mars Rover Replica, please check [1:2 Perseverance Mars Rover Replica Design and Building Diary].