NASA reveals origin of Spaghetti-like tangled object spotted by Mars Perseverance rover

The Perseverance rover which is exploring the surface of Mars for signs of ancient microbial life spotted a strange spaghetti-like object which triggered a lot of speculations. A few weeks later after the discovery, NASA finally revealed what the object is and where it came from. According to the agency, the tangled object is a piece of the Dacron netting that was part of the thermal blanket used during Perseverance’s landing on the red planet last February. 

Captured in photographs using Perseverance’s Front Left Hazard Avoidance Camera (HazCam), the object was recognised as part of the thermal blanket through its dimensions (6 cm across) and grid mesh pattern. “This particular piece of netting appears to have undergone significant unraveling/shredding, suggesting that it was subjected to strong forces”, the NASA Mars team wrote in a blog. 

Debris spotted by robots on Mars

Earlier this year, NASA shared a few images showing the debris scattered around the red planet after the Perseverance rover made its landing last year. On June 15, the rover's team shared a picture of a tin foil which was also part of the thermal blanket deployed during Perseverance's descent into Mars. 

Besides, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) also shared a few pictures showing the entry, descent and landing gear of the rover. The images below, which feature the massive parachute and the rover's protective backshell, were captured by the Ingenuity helicopter when it was at an altitude of 26 feet (8 meters) during its flight in April. "Perseverance had the best-documented Mars landing in history, with cameras showing everything from parachute inflation to touchdown", JPL’s Ian Clark, former Perseverance systems engineer", said in a statement. 

As for the Perseverance rover, it recently drilled and sealed the 12th rock sample which will soon be brought to Earth by NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) under the Mars Sample Return Program. Recently, NASA presented a refined plan to fetch those samples home in 2033 by launching an orbiter in 2027. Tap here to read more about the plan.