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EDL Sensor System of the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover Structure Components Functions

EDL Sensor System of the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover – part 1

EDL is short for Entry, Descent, and Landing for the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover mission. In order for people on Earth to learn if the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover lands successfully, or what kind of obstacles that the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover encounters while landing, the EDL microphone, the Lander Vision System Camera, the rover lookup camera, the rover lookdown camera and the Descent-stage “down look” camera were put on the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover‘s body. Our 1:2 Peseverance Mars Rover Replica will perfectly replicate the microphone and cameras, and we might even build some of them with real cameras and microphones if possible.

In the past, there are several attempts to send microphones to Mars for sound recording purposes, but none succeeded. In this mission, the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover is carrying a microphone on the side of the rover’s body in order to record the sound of the EDL process. The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover‘s EDL microphone is rather simple – as a matter of fact, it is an average microphone that anyone can purchase in any electronic store, only with a little bit of modification by the engineers. But the downside is that it might not survive the impact when the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover lands. Since this is a simple microphone, our Perseverance Mars Rover Replica might use the same type of microphone – of course, we will match the microphone’s appearance definitely – so it will be a real microphone to record actual sounds.

When the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover is descending, the EDL microphone will record the sound of the air friction, the sound of dust hitting the rover body, the sound of the Martian wind, etc. – just like the sound that we hear before an airplane lands on the airport. If the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover‘s EDL microphone luckily survives the impact, it will be able to record the sound of motors, wheels crushing the Martian sand, the sound of the other structure’s deployment process – just like what we hear in a car when the car is driving or opening the doors. For our 1:2 Perseverance Mars Rover Replica, the EDL microphone will continuously work as long as it is not broken purposely.

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Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover Structure Components Functions Science Instrument of Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover

MEDA of the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover – part 2

Radiation and Dust sensors

The radiation and dust sensor assembly for the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover‘s MEDA is located on the top deck. Our 1:2 Perseverance Mars Rover Replica will perfectly replicate the appearance structure of the radiation and dust sensor assembly but they won’t be actual sensors.  This Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover‘s MEDA’s radiation and dust sensor assembly consists of photodetectors and a charge-coupled device, and the purpose is to study the characteristics of the Martian dust, such as its shape, size, or opacity. The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover’s MEDA inherited a lot of features from previous space missions.

For example, from the Curiosity Rover mission, the rover environmental monitoring station (REMS) is applied on the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover. It is a set of sensors that are designed to work and collect information on a low atmosphere, which includes air and ground temperature sensors, wind sensors, humidity and pressure sensors, and a photometer.

From the Mars MetNet Lander Mission, the solar irradiance sensor (MetSIS) is inherited. Mars is a cold planet compared to our Earth. Moreover, the entry, descent, and landing process for the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover are extremely bumpy. Both harsh conditions could potentially affect the sensors. Therefore, this sensor is specially designed so that it can endure the landing impact and also operate normally at low temperatures. It consists of 32 detecting elements in 11 spectral bands. The sample rate and channels to be sample can both be manually and autonomously configured.

From the ExoMars 2016 Lander mission, DREAMS, which is short for Dust characterization, Risk assessment, and Environment Analyzer on the Martian Surface is inherited to the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover. The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover’s version of DREAMS has 7 detectors. These detectors are arranged so that a 360 ° azimuth is possible.

From the Mars Exploration Rover Misson and Mars Science Laboratory mission. the HazCams is applied to the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover and now is renamed as SkyCam on the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover.

Our Perseverance Mars Rover Replica will perfectly replicate the appearance structures of the REMS, MetSIS, DREAMS, and the HazCam, though they won’t have the functions as the real Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover.

The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover’s MEDA’s radiation and dust sensors are the first set of sensors that are specially for studying the sun brightness and dust conditions. This will help scientists model the atmospheric conditions of Mars and prepare for human exploration in the future.