Nasa releases first audio from Mars, video of landing

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WASHINGTON, Feb 23 ― The US space agency Nasa yesterday released the first audio from Mars, a faint wind sound captured by the Perseverance rover.

Nasa also released the first video of the landing of the rover on the Red Planet.

A microphone did not work during the descent but the rover was able to capture audio once it landed on Mars.

Nasa engineers played a short audio clip of what they said was a wind gust on the surface.  

The video clip, lasting three minutes and 25 seconds, showed the deployment of the parachute and the rover's touchdown on the surface of Mars in a cloud of dust.

“These are really amazing videos,” Michael Watkins, director of Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said at a briefing for reporters. “This is the first time we've ever been able to capture an event like the landing on Mars.”

Jessica Samuels, Perseverance's surface mission manager, said the rover was operating as expected so far.

“I am happy to report that Perseverance is healthy,” Samuels said. ― AFP