Last week, NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover arrived at a long-awaited “Bright Angel” location, so named because it features light-hued rocky geography that stands out in orbital data. The unique color of this site, as well as the surface features and location on the edge of the ancient channel of the Neretva Vallis River, made “Bright Angel” a place of interest for the mission’s scientific team.
After capturing some stunning long-distance images of Bright Angel, Perseverance approached the rocks. Closer camera images, Mastcam-Z and SuperCam data showed intriguing surface textures on these light-toned rocks that the science team is actively working to understand. The area features light-hued rock outcrops that may represent ancient sediments that later filled the channel or possibly much older rocks that were later exposed by river erosion.
After a few days to process the beautiful images and exciting location, Perseverance executed a planned abrasion on the rocks in front of the rover, which can be seen in the image above if you look closely under the rover’s arm. This abrasion zone is called “Walhalla Glades” after an ancient archaeological site in the Grand Canyon along the Colorado River, an homage to Bright Angel’s location on the edge of the ancient channel of the Neretva Vallis River.
Proximity scientific instruments were deployed to observe the abrasion zone in detail and provide high-resolution geochemical data of these rocks. In the hazard prevention camera image shown above, the PIXL instrument points downward toward the abrasion zone on the rock surface while scanning.
The science team will take the time to understand all the new data obtained at Bright Angel, comparing it to rocks Perseverance has investigated in the past and determining whether the area should be included in the sample repository aboard Perseverance. The rocks at Angel Brillante have sharp ridges, and some of the rocks have spheres that make them look like popcorn.
Characterizing the Bright Angel rocks, connecting them to the surrounding Neretva Vallis rocks and sediments, and placing them in context with the crater’s rim and margin units should write an exciting chapter in the history of Jezero Crater.
A key goal of the Perseverance mission to Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet’s geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and store Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust).
Upon completing the tests at Ángel Brillante, the rover’s next exploration will be at the site called “Serpentine Rapids.”
