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Written by: NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

Published: 31 January 2021

Seven minutes of harrowing descent to the Red Planet is in the not-so-distant future for the agency’s Mars 2020 mission.

NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover mission is just 22 days from landing on the surface of Mars. The spacecraft has about 25.6 million miles (41.2 million kilometers) remaining in its 292.5-million-mile (470.8-million-kilometer) journey and is currently closing that distance at 1.6 miles per second (2.5 kilometers per second).

Once at the top of the Red Planet’s atmosphere, an action-packed seven minutes of descent awaits – complete with temperatures equivalent to the surface of the Sun, a supersonic parachute inflation, and the first ever autonomous guided landing on Mars.

Only then can the rover – the biggest, heaviest, cleanest, and most sophisticated six-wheeled robotic geologist ever launched into space – search Jezero Crater for signs of ancient life and collect samples that will eventually be returned to Earth.

“NASA has been exploring Mars since Mariner 4 performed a flyby in July of 1965, with two more flybys, seven successful orbiters, and eight landers since then,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate at the agency’s headquarters in Washington. “Perseverance, which was built from the collective knowledge gleaned from such trailblazers, has the opportunity to not only expand our knowledge of the Red Planet, but to investigate one of the most important and exciting questions of humanity about the origin of life both on Earth and also on other planets.”

Jezero Crater is the perfect place to search for signs of ancient microbial life. Billions of years ago, the now-bone-dry 28-mile-wide (45-kilometer-wide) basin was home to an actively-forming river delta and lake filled with water.

The rock and regolith (broken rock and dust) that Perseverance’s Sample Caching System collects from Jezero could help answer fundamental questions about the existence of life beyond Earth.

Two future missions currently in the planning stages by NASA, in collaboration with ESA (European Space Agency), will work together to bring the samples back to Earth, where they will undergo in-depth analysis by scientists around the world using equipment far too large and complex to send to the Red Planet.

“Perseverance’s sophisticated science instruments will not only help in the hunt for fossilized microbial life, but also expand our knowledge of Martian geology and its past, present, and future,” said Ken Farley, project scientist for Mars 2020, from Caltech in Pasadena, California. “Our science team has been busy planning how best to work with what we anticipate will be a firehose of cutting-edge data. That’s the kind of ‘problem’ we are looking forward to.”

Testing future tech

While most of Perseverance’s seven science instruments are geared toward learning more about the planet’s geology and astrobiology, the mission also carries technologies more focused on future Mars exploration.

MOXIE (Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment), a car-battery-size device in the rover’s chassis, is designed to demonstrate that converting Martian carbon dioxide into oxygen is possible.

Future applications of the technology could produce the vast quantities of oxygen that would be needed as a component of the rocket fuel astronauts would rely on to return to Earth, and, of course, the oxygen could be used for breathing as well.

The Terrain-Relative Navigation system helps the rover avoid hazards. MEDLI2 (the Mars Entry, Descent, and Landing Instrumentation 2) sensor suite gathers data during the journey through the Martian atmosphere. Together the systems will help engineers design future human missions that can land more safely and with larger payloads on other worlds.

Another technology demonstration, the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, is attached to the belly of the rover. Between 30 and 90 days into the rover’s mission, Ingenuity will be deployed to attempt the first experimental flight test on another planet.

If that initial flight is successful, Ingenuity will fly up to four more times. The data acquired during these tests will help the next generation of Mars helicopters provide an aerial dimension to Mars exploration.

Getting ready for the red planet

Like people around the world, members of the Mars 2020 team have had to make significant modifications to their approach to work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

While a majority of the team members have performed their jobs via telework, some tasks have required an in-person presence at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which built the rover for the agency and is managing the mission.

Such was the case earlier this month when the team that will be on-console at JPL during landing went through a three-day-long COVID-adapted full-up simulation of the upcoming Feb. 18 Mars landing.

“Don’t let anybody tell you different – landing on Mars is hard to do,” said John McNamee, project manager for the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover mission at JPL. “But the women and men on this team are the best in the world at what they do. When our spacecraft hits the top of the Mars atmosphere at about three-and-a-half miles per second, we’ll be ready.”

Less than a month of dark, unforgiving interplanetary space remains before the landing. NASA Television and the agency’s website will carry live coverage of the event from JPL beginning at 11:15 a.m. PST (2:15 p.m. EST).

More about the mission

A key objective of Perseverance's mission on 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 cache Martian rock and regolith.

Subsequent missions, currently under consideration by NASA in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis.

The Mars 2020 mission is part of a larger program that includes missions to the Moon as a way to prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet. Charged with returning astronauts to the Moon by 2024, NASA will establish a sustained human presence on and around the Moon by 2028 through NASA's Artemis lunar exploration plans.

JPL, which is managed for NASA by Caltech in Pasadena, California, built and manages operations of the Perseverance rover.

For more about Perseverance visit www.mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/ and www.nasa.gov/perseverance.

For more information about NASA's Mars missions, go to https://www.nasa.gov/mars.

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Written by: Elizabeth Larson

Published: 30 January 2021

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace said more Lake County residents have received the COVID-19 vaccine and the case rate is showing improvement.

“Fortunately, it appears Lake County’s rise in COVID-19 cases that started in November has begun to improve,” Pace said Friday.

Lake County was up to 2,748 total cases on Friday, with 32 deaths.

Statewide, California passed 40,000 COVID-19 deaths on Friday, with more than 3,273,600 cases, according to information posted by Public Health departments in all 58 counties.

Pace said Lake County’s daily case rate remains very high, at 61 out of 100,000, so there is still a strong likelihood of coming into contact with the virus when visiting out in the community and doing things like visiting busy stores.

He said test positivity is beginning to decrease and on Friday was at 12.2 percent.

“Hospitals are not nearly as full as they have been for the last several weeks,” he added.

Lake County remains in the state’s purple tier, the most restrictive on the Blueprint for a Safer Economy. In that tier, indoor dining remains prohibited; only outdoor dining is allowed.

Regarding the county’s vaccine distribution effort, Pace said that so far approximately 3,500 Lake County residents have been vaccinated over the past month and a half.

Pace said the Lake County Health Department received 800 doses of vaccine this week – up from 300 to 400 weekly in recent weeks – and will get another 800 next week.

“Given the continuing shortage, prioritization remains necessary. Vaccination of school staff will be complete by the end of next week. Vulnerable elders are a focus, as well,” Pace said.

According to 2019 estimates, Lake County has 5,300 residents aged 75 and above and 9,100 residents aged 65 to 74.

“We continue to move vaccine out into the community, sharing doses with clinical partners and vaccinating people at standup sites in Lakeport and Clearlake, with the aim of using up all vaccine we receive each week,” Pace said.

Pace said accelerating the rate of immunization remains a primary focus. “We are advocating to get significantly more doses, and making preparations to accommodate further vaccination clinics.”

He said Public Health is not making appointments for the general public at this point; those in eligible categories are being contacted to schedule.

“Please do not show up at our sites without an appointment. You will not get a vaccine,” he said.

Senior centers are reaching out to the most vulnerable people they regularly serve. Pace said not to call the senior centers as it’s not an effective way to get an appointment.

If you or a loved one are in an eligible group and you haven’t been contacted, Pace said to reach out to your medical provider.

For information on vaccines and clinics, visit http://health.co.lake.ca.us/Coronavirus/Vaccines.htm, call 211 or text covid19 to 211-211, or call the MHOAC line at 707-263-8174.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

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Written by: Lake County News reports

Published: 30 January 2021

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Overnight and through the day Friday, Pacific Gas and Electric Co. crews continued assessing winter storm damage, making repairs and restoring electric service to customers in Northern and Central California.

That work will continue until every customer has been restored, the company said.

In its last report on Friday, PG&E said 95 percent of residences and businesses that lost power due to strong winds, heavy rains and deep snow earlier this week have had their power restored.

Crews continue to focus on the areas where the largest number of customers remain without power, including locations in Lake, Mendocino, Calaveras, Tuolumne, Yolo, Amador and Humboldt counties.

In those locations and elsewhere, PG&E has found more than 1,500 instances of damaged infrastructure where equipment needs to be replaced or repaired, including 365 broken poles and 1,417 spans of wire.

The last estimate, given on Friday afternoon, said approximately 42,000 customers were without power due to storm damage. Of those, approximately 10,000 customers are located where PG&E crews can’t gain access due to high snow, falling trees and blocked roads.

Where crews can access damaged equipment, they will continue to restore service to customers today, tonight and through the weekend.

On Friday morning, less than 1,000 Lake County customers remained without power, according to PG&E spokeswoman Deanna Contreras.

As of Friday night, several hundred Lake County customers – including more than 300 along Highway 175 near Glenbrook – had not had their power restored, according to the PG&E outage map.

Based on 30 years of weather data, PG&E meteorologists described this week’s winter storm as the strongest since 2011 and say that it caused the highest two-day and three-day outage totals since 2010.

PG&E has been reaching out to every customer today who is still without power due to storm-related outages. This includes automated phone calls with updated information as well as through other channels. As crews complete damage assessments, customers will get updates providing their estimated time of restoration.

To support communities experiencing extended outages, PG&E has provided a variety of support including contributing $50,000 to the American Red Cross for storm relief, delivering blankets and water to customers in Yolo County and providing 21 megawatts of temporary generation to keep critical facilities powered in four counties.

As of Friday afternoon, PG&E said its crews had restored power to approximately 818,000 customers out of the approximately 860,000 who lost it due to heavy wind, rain and snow after the storm arrived on Tuesday.

PG&E crews, as well as some contract and mutual-aid crews, are in the field, assessing conditions, making repairs and restoring customers. Due to treacherous conditions and difficult terrain, these assessment activities are ongoing.

Damage from wind, heavy rains and snow has caused access issues due to roads blocked by trees, debris and snow In some locations, PG&E has been using helicopters, snow cats and four-wheel drive vehicles to gain access to infrastructure in the hardest-hit areas.

More than 450 crews plus another 500 or so troublemen and qualified electrical workers are engaged in assessment and restoration work. They are being supported by thousands of other employees who are staffing PG&E emergency-response centers, either virtually or in person.