Looking for Life on Mars | Full Documentary I NOVA | PBS

Follow along as NASA launches the Mars 2020 Mission, perhaps the most ambitious hunt yet for signs of ancient life on Mars. Official Website: https://to.pbs.org/3m1VnJI | #novapbs The spacecraft will blaze into the Martian atmosphere at some 12,000 miles per hour and attempt to lower the Perseverance Rover in the rocky Jezero Crater, home to a dried-up river delta scientists think could have harbored life. Perseverance will comb the area for signs of life and collect samples for possible return to Earth. Traveling onboard is a four-pound helicopter that will conduct a series of test flights—the first on another planet. During its journey, Perseverance will also test technology designed to produce oxygen from the Martian atmosphere, in hopes that the gas could be used for fuel—or for humans to breathe—on future missions. Chapters 00:00 Introduction 03:42 Mars: Exploring The Red Planet with the Curiosity Rover 09:49 Looking Life in the Jezero Crater of Mars 14:56 Preparing the Perseverance Rover for Mars 22:23 The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Launch of Rover 25:22 The Launch of the Perseverance Rover 30:07 Attempting to Fly a Copter on Mars 33:58 Creating Breathable Air on Mars 38:32 How Will the Samples Come Back to Earth? 44:13 The Suspenseful Landing of the Perseverance Rover on Mars © 2020 WGBH Educational Foundation All rights reserved This program was produced by GBH, which is solely responsible for its content. Some funders of NOVA also fund basic science research. Experts featured in this film may have received support from funders of this program. Funding for NOVA is provided by Draper, the David H. Koch Fund for Science, the NOVA Science Trust, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and PBS viewers. This program is made possible by viewers like you. Support your local PBS station here: https://pbs.org/donate/