The US space agency NASA’s Opportunity, which is a robotic rover active on the planet Mars since 2004, has become the first human-made vehicle to complete a marathon on the Red Planet by traversing 26.22 miles (42.19 km) during its stay of 11 years and two months on the Martian surface. The rover was launched on July 7, 2003 as part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover program.
According to John Callas, Opportunity project manager at Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, “This is the first time any human enterprise has exceeded the distance of a marathon on the surface of another world.”
During its mission, Opportunity and its twin rover, Spirit now defunct have discovered wet environmental conditions on ancient Mars, some of which are mild enough to have been favorable for life.
Steve Squyres, Opportunity principal investigator at Cornell University, “This mission isn’t about setting distance records, of course; it’s about making scientific discoveries on Mars and inspiring future explorers to achieve even more.”
The solar-powered robot was assigned the long-term task of exploring the rim of the Endeavour Crater after its lifespan crossed the mark that the researchers have expected.
