The Perseverance rover has been exploring Mars for over a year now, and in that time it has collected six different rock cores. But these cores did not come easy, and Mars has thrown more than a couple curveballs at the rover operations team during this time. JPL's Avi Okon joins Jake to talk about these challenges, and how the sample caching system has performed throughout the first year.

We talk Perseverance, Drills, and Rock Samples

• First sample attempt fails (August)
• More on attempt 1
• Assessing sample attempt 7 (January)
• Rotating the bit to eject broken sample
• Ejecting last of the broken sample
• Resolution of debris
• More on how the coring bit holds a sample in
• Diagram of Sampling and Caching Subsystem

Follow Avi and Perseverance

• Perseverance's Website
• Sample Caching System Site

Follow Jake & WeMartians

• WeMartians.com
• Patreon (https://www.wemartians.com/support)
• WeMartians Shop (shop.wemartians.com)
• Mailing List (https://wemartians.com/signup)
• Twitter (@we_martians)
• Jake’s Twitter (@JakeOnOrbit)
• Off-Nominal Podcast
• Marsti.me

Marsti.me

Learn about time on Mars! See live mission clocks, learn about sols and Mars years and solar longitude, and discover your Martian birthday! Visit Marsti.me, a new site from Jake.

Dare Mighty Things Design

Celebrate Perseverance's landing anniversary with the Dare Mighty Things design at the WeMartians shop today! You can get it in a t-shirt or on a coffee mug.