Sample collection by the Perseverance rover has been suspended

The collection of Martian samples, entrusted to the Perseverance apparatus, has been temporarily suspended. According to NASA, the rover stopped collecting samples after debris partially blocked the rig’s carousel (the device in which drills are stored and where samples are loaded). The device faced a problem on December 29, but the rover operators had to wait until January 6 to send a command to remove the drill and undock the manipulator from the carousel, after which pictures were taken to understand what happened.

Sample collection by the Perseverance rover has been suspended
Perseverance rover fails mission to Red Planet: NASA mulls next step

It is believed that the operation of the carousel is blocked by pebbles falling out of the sample container and preventing it from being loaded into the carousel correctly. Meanwhile, the preservation of the samples is critical to plans to get them back to Earth.

However, cross on trying to preserve and deliver the images early. According to a NASA spokesman, the carousel is designed to work in such conditions, however, this is the first time the team will have to remove the debris. The agency’s specialists intend to get rid of them in a “controlled and accurate manner.”

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