The first recordings of the Perseverance rover’s SuperCam instrument were transmitted from Mars to Earth. Now it is possible to listen to the Martian wind and sounds that sound like a clicking sound.
The SuperCam instrument, mounted on the Perseverance rover, recorded the first sounds on Mars, NASA reports in a statement.
On two of the three recordings of a few seconds, it is possible to hear the sound of the wind; on the third, the sounds of SuperCam’s laser impact when it hits – 30 times at a distance of three meters – a rock for examination.
“You’re listening to the first audio recordings of laser strikes on Mars. These rhythmic tapping sounds heard by the microphone on my SuperCam instrument have different intensities that can help my team figure out the structure of the rocks around me,” the agency details on the rover’s official Twitter account.
“The sounds taken are of remarkable quality. It’s amazing to think that we are going to study the first sounds ever recorded on the surface of Mars!” Rejoices Naomi Murdoch, researcher of the mission.
Perched on the head of the rover, SuperCam brings together five measurement techniques, including a camera and a microphone, intended to study the geology of Mars and to help with the selection of samples.
Sent to Mars as part of a NASA mission on March 4, Perseverance successfully travelled 6.5 meters. This first “trip” lasted 33 minutes, during which the rover was able to take a photo of its own tracks on Martian soil.
