Perseverance has mastered autonomous navigation on Mars
The Perseverance rover has used a new technology for the first time that allows it to independently determine its exact location on Mars by comparing its own photos with orbital images. This advancement speeds up navigation and reduces delays when moving across the planet's surface.
Ingenium
The NASA team has, for the first time, implemented a new technology that allows the Perseverance rover to independently determine its precise location. To achieve this, the rover uses images of its current position and compares them with photos taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO).
Features of Perseverance Navigation
Since 2021, Perseverance has been exploring the surface of Mars. As it moves across the planet, the rover regularly captures images of the surrounding terrain, taking into account possible wheel slippage. Over time, small errors in determining its coordinates can accumulate, and during long journeys, the deviation may exceed 30 meters. In such cases, the rover stops to avoid hazardous areas and waits for new instructions from Earth, which can take a day or more. The new Mars Global Localization technology helps prevent such delays.
Application of Mars Global Localization
On February 2, Perseverance’s navigation cameras took a panoramic 360-degree image of the area known as Mala Mala, located on the edge of Jezero Crater. The captured images were combined into a circular orthomosaic map. An onboard algorithm then matched this map with orbital images from the MRO, allowing the rover’s position to be determined with an accuracy of up to 25 centimeters. The entire process took about two minutes.
Technical Details
The algorithm runs on a processor that was previously used for communication with the Ingenuity helicopter, which is now retired. Thanks to this, Perseverance can independently determine its location and continue along its planned route without needing to stop and wait for further instructions.