Skip Navigation
menu

Videos

Challenges of Getting to Mars: Weather Dangers and Delays

May 24, 2002

The rover launch site at Cape Canaveral, Florida is the "Lightning Capital of the United States." Launching a spacecraft safely is challenging enough. Learn how the Force of Nature intercepted the Rover Team's efforts to launch Spirit for two days.

Related

Athena Science team members and other Mars Exploration Rover team members pose for a photo at JPL.
More
Athena Science team members and other Mars Exploration Rover team members pose for a photo at JPL.
Mars Exploration Rover team members
This June 2017 view from the Pancam on NASA's Opportunity Mars rover shows the area just above "Perseverance Valley" on a large crater's rim. A broad notch in the crest of the rim, at right, mig...
More
This June 2017 view from the Pancam on NASA's Opportunity Mars rover shows the area just above "Perseverance Valley" on a large crater's rim. A broad notch in the crest of the rim, at right, might have been a spillway for a fluid that carved the valley, out of sight on the other side of the rim.
Panorama Above 'Perseverance Valley' on Mars
A rock with a white edge and a red center reminds us of a jelly donut in a box from the local donut shop in this image taken by Opportunity on February 4, 2014. Named “pinnacle Island” by Opportun...
More
A rock with a white edge and a red center reminds us of a jelly donut in a box from the local donut shop in this image taken by Opportunity on February 4, 2014. Named "pinnacle Island" by Opportunity's science team, this rock mysteriously appeared in an image where it had not been 4 days earlier. Scientists believe that opportunity drove over and broke a rocks in the upper part of this image, sending that piece of pastry rolling downhill.
A Sweet Find
The close camaraderie among scientists and engineers who worked on NASA’s Opportunity rover is evident in this image from Feb. 12, 2019, at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
More
The close camaraderie among scientists and engineers who worked on NASA’s Opportunity rover is evident in this image from Feb. 12, 2019, at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
One Last Listen
The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter acquired this image of the Opportunity rover on the southwest rim of "Santa Maria" crater on New...
More
The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter acquired this image of the Opportunity rover on the southwest rim of "Santa Maria" crater on New Year's Eve 2010, or Martian day (sol) 2466 of the rover's work on Mars.
Mars Orbiter Sees Rover Opportunity at Crater Edge (Annotated)
Steve Squyres, principal investigator for NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover mission, and Matt Golombek, the mission’s project scientist, discussed the ground-breaking science returned by the mission’s ...
More
Steve Squyres, principal investigator for NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover mission, and Matt Golombek, the mission’s project scientist, discussed the ground-breaking science returned by the mission’s twin rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, on Feb. 13, 2019.
A Celebration of Science from Spirit and Opportunity
An artist's concept portrays a NASA Mars Exploration Rover on the surface of Mars. Two rovers have been built for 2003 launches and January 2004 arrival at two sites on Mars. Each rover has the mob...
More
An artist's concept portrays a NASA Mars Exploration Rover on the surface of Mars.
Artist's Concept of Rover on Mars
This stereo panorama shows the view NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity gained from the top of the "Cape Tribulation" segment of the rim of Endeavour Crater. The rover reached this point thre...
More
This stereo panorama shows the view NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity gained from the top of the "Cape Tribulation" segment of the rim of Endeavour Crater.
High Viewpoint for 11-Year-Old Rover Mission on Mars (Stereo)
This panoramic image, dubbed "Rub al Khali," was taken by Opportunity on the plains of Meridiani during the rover's 456th to 464th sols on Mars.
More
This panoramic image, dubbed "Rub al Khali," was taken by Opportunity on the plains of Meridiani during the rover's 456th to 464th sols on Mars.
Opportunity's 'Rub al Khali' Panorama
This June 2017 stereo view from NASA's Opportunity Mars rover shows the area just above "Perseverance Valley" on the rim of a crater. It combines images from the left eye and right eye of the ro...
More
This June 2017 stereo view from NASA's Opportunity Mars rover shows the area just above "Perseverance Valley" on the rim of a crater. It combines images from the left eye and right eye of the rover's Pancam to appear three-dimensional when seen through blue-red glasses with the red lens on the left.
Panorama Above 'Perseverance Valley' on Mars (Stereo)
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity used its panoramic camera to record this eastward horizon view on the 2,407th Martian day, or sol, of the rover's work on Mars (Oct. 31, 2010).
More
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity used its panoramic camera to record this eastward horizon view on the 2,407th Martian day, or sol, of the rover's work on Mars (Oct. 31, 2010).
East Rim of Endeavour Crater in Opportunity's View, Sol 2407
Researchers used the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity to capture this 10-second-exposure view of comet C/2013 A1 Siding Spring as it passed near Mars on Oct. 1...
More
Researchers used the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity to capture this 10-second-exposure view of comet C/2013 A1 Siding Spring as it passed near Mars on Oct. 19, 2014.
Mars Rover Opportunity's View of Passing Comet (Short Exposure)
This is a zoomed in view on Spirit 's "Lookout" panorama on the drive up to the summit "Husband Hills."
More
This is a zoomed in view on Spirit 's "Lookout" panorama on the drive up to the summit "Husband Hills."
Close-Up of 'Lookout' Panorama
This false-color panoramic image, taken on martian day, or sol, 561 (Aug. 22, 2005) by the Opportunity rover, shows the nature of the outcrop rocks that the rover is encountering on its southward j...
More
This false-color panoramic image, taken on martian day, or sol, 561 (Aug. 22, 2005) by the Opportunity rover, shows the nature of the outcrop rocks that the rover is encountering on its southward journey across the martian plains to "Erebus Crater."
Opportunity Examines Cracks and Coatings on Mars Rocks
This photo shows fifteen of the women engineers and scientists who work on the Mars Exploration Rover. They are standing behind or kneeling beside a precise replica of the rover in the mission cont...
More
This photo shows fifteen of the women engineers and scientists who work on the Mars Exploration Rover. They are standing behind or kneeling beside a precise replica of the rover in the mission control room.
Spirit: Women on the Mars Exploration Rover team
So, you want to study Mars with a lander or rover - but where exactly do you send it? Learn how scientists and engineers tackle this question in this 60-second video from NASA's Jet Propulsion Labo...
More
So, you want to study Mars with a lander or rover - but where exactly do you send it? Learn how scientists and engineers tackle this question in this 60-second video from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Mars in a Minute: How Do You Choose a Landing Site?
This image from the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity's panoramic camera shows the results of the second drilling by the rock abrasion tool, located on the rover's instrument deployment device, or...
More
This image from the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity's panoramic camera shows the results of the second drilling by the rock abrasion tool, located on the rover's instrument deployment device, or "arm."
Brushing A Mars Rock
Two spacecraft engineers join a grouping of vehicles providing a comparison of three generations of Mars rovers developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The setting is JPL's ...
More
Two spacecraft engineers join a grouping of vehicles providing a comparison of three generations of Mars rovers developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The setting is JPL's Mars Yard testing area.
Three Generations of Rovers with Crouching Engineers
This artist's rendering depicts NASA's Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity. The twin rovers were launched in 2003 and arrived on Mars in January 2004.
More
This artist's rendering depicts NASA's Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity. The twin rovers were launched in 2003 and arrived on Mars in January 2004.
Mars Exploration Rovers: Spirit & Opportunity - Artist's Concept
This image is a cropped version of the last 360-degree panorama taken by the Opportunity rover's Pancam from May 13 through June 10, 2018. The panorama appears in 3D when seen through blue-red glas...
More
This image is a cropped version of the last 360-degree panorama taken by the Opportunity rover's Pancam from May 13 through June 10, 2018. The panorama appears in 3D when seen through blue-red glasses with the red lens on the left.
Opportunity Legacy Pan (Stereo)
This is the Spirit panoramic camera's "Lookout" panorama, acquired on the rover's 410th to 413th martian days, or sols (Feb. 27 to Mar. 2, 2005).
More
This is the Spirit panoramic camera's "Lookout" panorama, acquired on the rover's 410th to 413th martian days, or sols (Feb. 27 to Mar. 2, 2005).
Lookout Panorama' from Spirit
This scene from the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity looks back toward part of the west rim of Endeavour Crater that the rover drove along, heading southward, ...
More
This scene from the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity looks back toward part of the west rim of Endeavour Crater that the rover drove along, heading southward, during the summer of 2014.
Rover's Tracks in Stereo View Along Rim of Endeavour Crater
This image from the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity shows where a rock called "Pinnacle Island" had been before it appeared in front of the rover in early Jan...
More
This image from the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity shows where a rock called "Pinnacle Island" had been before it appeared in front of the rover in early January 2014.
Where Martian 'Jelly Doughnut' Rock Came From (Stereo)
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has been working on Mars since landing inside Eagle Crater on Jan. 25, 2004 (Universal Time; evening of Jan. 24, Pacific Standard Time).
More
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has been working on Mars since landing inside Eagle Crater on Jan. 25, 2004 (Universal Time; evening of Jan. 24, Pacific Standard Time).
Opportunity's First Decade of Driving on Mars
A round of applause at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, for a successful end to the mission of NASA's Opportunity Mars rover on Feb. 13, 2019.
More
A round of applause at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, for a successful end to the mission of NASA's Opportunity Mars rover on Feb. 13, 2019.
Applause for a Rover Overachiever

You Might Also Like

The agency is asking the NASA community to work together to develop a revised plan that leverages innovation and proven technology.
More
NASA Sets Path to Return Mars Samples, Seeks Innovative Designs
NASA Sets Path to Return Mars Samples, Seeks Innovative Designs
NASA has proven powered, controlled flight is possible on other worlds, just as the Wright brothers proved it was possible on Earth.
More
After Three Years on Mars, NASA's Ingenuity Helicopter Mission Ends
After Three Years on Mars, NASA's Ingenuity Helicopter Mission Ends
The agency established the board in May 2023 to evaluate the technical, cost, and schedule plans prior to confirmation of the mission’s design.
More
NASA Releases Independent Review's Mars Sample Return Report
NASA Releases Independent Review's Mars Sample Return Report
A pair of quakes in 2021 sent seismic waves deep into the Red Planet’s core, giving scientists the best data yet on its size and composition.
More
NASA InSight Study Provides Clearest Look Ever at Martian Core
NASA InSight Study Provides Clearest Look Ever at Martian Core
Ten sample tubes, capturing an amazing variety of Martian geology, have been deposited on Mars’ surface so they could be studied on Earth in the future.
More
NASA's Perseverance Rover Completes Mars Sample Depot
NASA's Perseverance Rover Completes Mars Sample Depot
Filled with rock, the sample tube will be one of 10 forming a depot of tubes that could be considered for a journey to Earth by the Mars Sample Return campaign.
More
NASA's Perseverance Rover Deposits First Sample on Mars Surface
NASA's Perseverance Rover Deposits First Sample on Mars Surface