What is going on with Perseverance?
Click for interactive map.
While there have been no reported issues with the Mars rover Perseverance, and while it appears to be functioning normally as it moves around the hilly barren terrain west of Jezero Crater, there appears to be some sort of indecisiveness in how the science team has been operating the rover for more than a year, with an almost complete black-out of updates to explain what they are doing.
The map to the right provides a sense of this dithering. The last time the rover drilled a core sample was June 6, 2025 (sol 1551), more than fifteen months ago.
Since then, the rover first traveled south along the outer rim of Jezero Crater to point A, then west to point B, then west again to point C, then south to point D, then south to point E, then north again to point D, then east passing point B to head north to its present position at point F. As far as I can tell, during these entire wanderings over more then a year, the science team made no effort to drill any core samples, even though they spent some time at each of these points and even did some preliminary drill work in a few places.
Furthermore, since December 2025 the science team has issued no updates. For most of the mission the team would issue an update about once every two weeks. After the rover left that last core sample site in June 2025, this pattern continued for several months, but by in the fall of 2025 the updates slowed to once a month, and after December 2025 they ceased altogether.
The lack of updates might simply be a budget issue. The team might no longer have enough money to pay someone to write the updates, and is using its money instead to focus solely on operating the rover.
Yet, why have they not drilled any additional core samples? Did the decision to cancel the Mars Sample Return mission impact the operations at Perseverance? Without any mission to bring core samples back, could it be that NASA management issued an order to stop getting core samples?
And why the wandering back and forth over the same ground? It could be they are simply doing an overall survey of this terrain before picking a drill site, but it seems to be taking them much too long to do so.
It seems that the time is long past due for a new update. Otherwise it will start to appear they are hiding something.
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WE are “wondering”, but Perseverance is “wandering”.
Fixed. Thanks.
I’m not sure I trust any program run by JPL these days.
They’ve been absolutely riddled with DEI like a house infested with termites.
NASA is now looking at letting other universities (like Texas A&M) operate the field center–a pretty good sign of the campus’ sorry state.
Collapse is the inevitable result.
The Cheyava Falls/Sapphire Canyon leopard spots biosignatures were found in July 24 and announced in September 25. A long delay if they’ve found another biosignature would be expected. It would be great if they thought they’d found a fossil stromatolite field, wouldn’t it?!
Capricorn One (1978)
The Landing Scene
https://youtu.be/2LhsuPLvtFk
3:27
Why not just ask them?
Nasa JPL intentionally make it difficult to contact them. The last “Team” roster update is from April 30, 2020. https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/jpl/meet-the-people-behind-nasas-perseverance-rover/
If you search away from the Perseverance main page (mission page), you can find an update from May 12, 2026. There are contacts listed at the bottom. https://www.nasa.gov/missions/mars-2020-perseverance/perseverance-rover/nasas-perseverance-rover-snaps-selfie-in-mars-western-frontier/
Nasa JPL also make it difficult to see what the project costs. It is burried with a bunch of other project costs. https://www.nasa.gov/current-reports-and-transcripts/
L.E. Joiner: My efforts over the years to contact some NASA science teams has been somewhat futile, for a variety of reasons, from bureaucratic inaction to management information control to a desire to blacklist me because I have expressed conservative opinions. To a large extent I don’t bother any more. I have found it acts to delay reporting, often so long that others get the story out first.
What? The Never A Straight Answer agency “hiding” something? Nah, couldn’t be. (But your question is spot on.)
L. E. Joiner has it right. You are a credentialed, well respected science journalist, so reach out and ask them what’s going on.
Freedom of information, taxpayer dollars, etc.
Whatever they do — or don’t — say should at least shed some light on what might be happening up there at Jezero Crater. Inquiring minds would like to know. Likewise, have you raised this issue in any of your recent radio segments?
Thank you for these posts. I somehow forget this scientific marvel is in operation.
Maybe their drill bits are all dull and need sharpening. An alternate reason could be their bin for holding collections is full and they cannot add any more core samples.
Nope. The drill is not dull. And they have bins for twice as many core samples as have been collected so far.
Maybe they’re on the cusp of announcing something truly wondrous after obtaining confirming data. Maybe they’re just drunk and/or incompetent and driving around in circles. On Mars. Who knows, it’s hard to tell in demonic bizzaro clown world.