The Mars exploration vehicle "Persaviance" reflects things "invisible" to humans with that camera.

A parachute for deceleration is developed, and a rocket of the Skike lane, which is the descent device, is sprayed.After a time called "7 minutes of fear," the "Persaviance", which was created by mankind for scientific surveys, has finally landed on Mars with 128 million miles (about 200km).。

And Persaviance opened a lot of "eyes" and looked around.

Persaviance is equipped with a large number of cameras.If two cameras mounted on a small helicopter that fly autonomously, there are 25 units.

Most of the cameras are useful for the exploration car to move safely.However, some are used to carefully look at Mars rocks and sand, and find traces that once existed there.

Some of them can see the colors and textures almost the same as the human who developed the camera.However, some cameras can see more than that, and only below.In short, the camera of the exploration car captures colors that cannot be captured by human eyes and brain.Nevertheless, the human brain must decipher the photos sent by such a camera to the earth.

Infographic indicating the geology of Mars

To find traces of life, you need to go to a place where life once existed.In the case of Mars, the place is "Jezero Crater".

3 billion to 4 billion years ago, Jezero Crater was a shallow lake, and sediment was flowing down the lake shore.Currently, the shore is a 150 -feet (about 50m) cliff, and it has a colorful linear pattern with dried sediment spread throughout the ancient Sanshu.

These various colors are infographics that visually express the geology of Mars.It overlaps several layers for each age, and the color shows the times.It also represents a chemical composition.If a scientist of the Aeronautics and Space Bureau (NASA) turns the appropriate camera, you may know what minerals are reflected in it, and that a very small creature on Mars used to live on its sediment.

"If there is a sedimentary rock that holds some biological evidence on Mars, it is this place we can find it," he said, one of the Persavian's planetary scientists at Arizona State University.Jim Bell, the chief researcher, says."It should be here"

A special camera to see something invisible

Scientists are looking for traces of life.But scientists cannot see it directly.Because some of the most interesting colors contained in the 50m full -size infographics are invisible to the eyes.At least, it doesn't look like you or my eyes on the earth.

The color occurs when the light reflects on something, bounces, transmits, and then hits the eyes.However, the light on Mars is slightly different from the light on the earth.And the eyes of the parsaviance can see the light consisting of reflection X -rays, infrared rays, or ultraviolet rays that we humans.The physical phenomenon is the same, but the perception is different.

Bell's team is equipped with a pair of super science binoculars called "MASTCAM-Z" in the Persaviancing tower ("Z" means zoom)."We have developed MastCam-Z for an exploration car that goes to a place where Mars is not yet decided. So, in consideration of all possibilities, designed the perfect eyes to capture any geology of Mars.Melissa Rice, a co-researcher of MastCam-Z, a planetary scientist at the University of Western Washington University.

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