NASA believes the problem may have been with the rock itself.Failed Rock CollectionNASA's Perseverance Rover failed to gather any rock samples from Mars that it could send back to Earth Friday.NASA released that the rover dug into Jezero Crater in order to collect samples. Researchers claimed that the drill used for extraction was perfectly functional. They discovered that no rocks were actually collected when they checked the tube afterward.Although this isn't the perfect solution, it is still a step in the right direction, according to Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator at NASA's Science Mission Directorate.What went wrong?NASA is still trying to figure out why Perseverance failed, but NASA has a leading hypothesis that it is due to the rock.AdvertisementAdvertisementInitial thoughts are that the empty tube could be due to the rock target not reacting in the expected way during coring and less likely a hardware problem with the Sampling and Caching system, stated Jennifer Trosper, JPL's project manager for Perseverance, in a press release.The researchers are optimistic that they can turn the tide with Zurbuchen stating that they will persevere in their search for a solution.31 Samples from EarthNASA has set a lofty goal of collecting 31 samples from Mars to send back to Earth.Once the samples have been collected, they will be kept in tubes until the next NASA mission (in partnership with the European Space Agency), arrives to bring it back to Earth. Once the samples are collected, researchers will be able conduct a more detailed analysis.AdvertisementAdvertisementAlthough it is disappointing, NASA plans to bring soil and rock samples from Mars back to Earth. They will be revolutionary in many ways.READ MORE: NASA's Perseverance Team Evaluates First Mars Sampling Attempt [NASA]Continue reading: NASA Mars Rover Finds Bedrock Similar to Flagstones
