NASA utilizes the power of Cloud Computing to keep its Perseverance Mars rover on track

Throughout NASA’s mission to explore Mars, the space administration agency confirmed that the Perseverance Mars rover has been utilizing Amazon’s Cloud Computing platform, known as Amazon Web Services (AWS), for all the science and engineering data that is currently being processed.

According to NASA, the Mars Rover takes thousands of images from a record number of cameras which is sent to the team in high volumes of data processed through the AWS platform. The NASA Jet Propulsion lab claims that the platform has made storing and processing a huge amount of data much easier enabling the team to make much faster decisions in regards to the health and safety of the rover. Moreover, this helps the respective engineers to further plan out the rover’s next day activities.

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According to Amazon:
“The rover requires visibility to drive, so it is important for the team to be able to send the next batch of instructions back to the rover within a specific timeframe. The increased efficiency will allow Mars 2020 to accomplish its ambitious goal of collecting more samples and driving longer distances during the prime mission, compared to previous rovers.”

This is a huge win for Amazon as it scales up to cement its position as the top-tier cloud computing platform in the world. Apart from just overseeing the data of the Mars rover, the AWS platform also powers the Mars mission website and is able to scale up to meet any given demands especially at peak times which are said to be millions of users.

Teresa Clarson, Vice President of the Worldwide Public sector and industries at AWS, further added:
“AWS is proud to support NASA JPL’s Perseverance mission. From the outset, AWS cloud services have enabled NASA JPL in its mission to capture and share mission-critical images, and help to answer key questions about the potential for life on Mars.”

Moreover, the public will now be able to track the Mars Rover location on a map in a 3D experience that puts any individual in the middle of Mars seeing the plant through the view of the Mars rover. Soon new raw images taken by the rover will also be made available to the public.