Mars - what has driven us to go there with our robotic emissaries time and again, decade after decade, are fundamental questions.  Did life ever exist there and does it still? 

The Perseverance rover is heading to Mars with the expressed purpose of seeking signs of past microbial life.  The landing site is a place called the Jezero Crater. 

In the planet’s ancient history, NASA scientists said there was a lake here and a river delta- a perfect spot for life to have developed.  As it descends and lands, the spacecraft’s on-board cameras are expected to send back never before seen images. 

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