Last week, on Thursday, February 18, 2021, NASA live-streamed the Perseverance rover (dubbed “Percy”) landing on Mars. Did you watch its exciting, nail-biting landing?
Since then, the video footage has been streamed all over the internet, so if you didn’t watch it live, there’s no shortage of where to find it now. Almost immediately after landing, Percy released the first photos it took on the Red Planet. This week, the first sounds ever recorded on Mars have been released. Pretty neat!
Tell us in the poll if you watched it live. We all should have had a giant watch party together!
No but I was unaware of it happening or I would have. I’m here in Quartzsite Arizona enjoying the solitude and peace and quiet and have since watched it several times.
I’m just amazed at how far we have come since the 60’s.
I’m sure that soon we will be able to book trips to the moon! Just like Jules Vernes novel!
I wish there were still “Like” buttons……..because I would have clicked it for your comment. Totally agree. If Elon Musk continues with his dream, it may not be long.
Kind of jaded to it now as I remember watching the original Mercury missions in grade school when I was a kid. It is just another event now days.
We were traveling at the time
Did not see the actual landing.
I wasn’t aware of it in time to actually see it on TV., and I don’t remember any word of it on the news beforehand. I guess no one figured out a way to politicize it enough to be news worthy. It’s gotta be either tragedy or politics to make the news.
So sad Dan, but you’re absolutely right. There IS no news – unless it’s political – and that’s not news either. It’s, well, you know . . .
I saw it later that day on cnn
You nailed it.
I had heard about it on the news leading up to it for about a week. 🙂 —Diane at RVtravel.com
The space program is exciting, but I truly feel that we should be spending more time and money on exploring our oceans and fixing our own planet earth. This way we won’t end up living in suits to go outside and living in bubbles. There is so much we don’t know about our oceans and how to care for them.
I didn’t watch because I didn’t know so I have questions for those who did. Who was filming the landing? Did they show it parachuting down? If it used parachutes to make its landing, where did the air come from that makes a parachute operable as parachutes don’t work well in a vacuum such as space. Or was this a simulation of what NASA thought was happening? It sounds like I’m making jest, but I’m serious. In all the moon landings it was apparent someone was outside on the surface filming the lunar landing, and someone was outside the space capsule filming the capsule as it separated from the mother ship and deployed the parachutes in a vacuum for its decent to the surface. These are serious questions to be asked and NASA needs to identify who and how these things happen. To use The National Inquirer motto, inquiring minds want to know. Y’all have a good day.
Good Grief !!
I was privileged to work on Project Apollo back in the mid and late 1960’s while employed by Cornell Aeronautical Labs just outside of Buffalo, NY. While there were only about 4000 NASA employees, there were close to 40,000 people under sub contracts working on Project Apollo. Since then I have tried to keep up to date on all of the United States Space Program events both manned and unmanned. The technology, medical and mechanical advances that the US Space Programs, both NASA and commercial, has brought many of us more pleasures and increased safety in aircraft and automobiles to name just a few, All being done on less than 1% of the national budget. Stay safe, Stay well, Safe travels.
I think that a scientific malaise has set in America. We of the Baby Boom generation can remember the excitement and wonderment of Mercury, Gemini and Apollo missions. In 1961when Alan Sheppard was launched in the first manned I was in a Jr. high high mechanical drawing class. Everything stopped when the PA system was turned on to his launch. The school was adjacent to a very busy city street where the traffic just pulled to the curb as everyone was tuned in. If today’s survey was back then I bet 80% or more would have listened or watched live.
Part 2: We have gotten so used to space travel that comic book heroes are now what people care about. Today we doubt our scientists and engineers yet look at what was just accomplished. Think about it for a second: hundreds of millions of miles and an unbelievable landing that would have brought a tear and a heart pounding with American pride to even all those Astronauts of the early days of space flight. Human imagination and determination lives on in this country. I have hope. My 16 year old grandson is more of a space geek than was his Boomer Pop-Pop.
If this pandemic and political grid lock has you down take comfort and joy in knowing America can and still has the will to conquer the unknown. The real heroes are not in comic books they are in the labs and behind the computer screens of America.
Great comment, Arthur. Thank you! Take care, and stay healthy. 😀 —Diane at RVtravel.com
We had no electricity the whole week, so couldn’t watch it. Texas was in bad shape that week.
I forget that NASA still does stuff. I lost all interest after the Apollo project ended.
I was just now watching some live video. It looks like Quartzsite, Death Valley, or Mars. I think I’ll go with Mars . . .
Where’s Matt Damon doing a selfie?
I answered no because no one on earth saw it land until 11 minutes after it actually happened.
My family has paid much more attention to the various space projects since C19 hit our shores. Whether it is the launch of Starlink satellites and the successful return of their boosters to earth, the test flights of Starship (still hoping to stick those landings), or the marvel of landing another rover on Mars after a seven month journey through 133 million miles of space, each event takes us temporarily away from the daily horror of C19 and the political antics and embarrassment in our country. Our various attempts to get mankind off the third rock from the sun to explore the fourth rock and beyond illustrate the best of our country and progress toward a better future. To Elon Musk and JPL…thanks for taking our minds off the nightmares here on earth, at least temporarily! Thanks for the question!
I saw it and it was amazing. I never get tired of following launches and landings. Our future lies beyond this planet.
Seeing no value in such a desolate desert planet, sorry just have no interest.
Wanted to stream it on my phone while I was at work, but I was in an area that barely had 3G. Watched it online when I got home and more videos over the next few days.
Didnt watch. No TV in our rig (by choice). A lot of ham radio stuff instead.