National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) declared the name of the 5th Mars (red planet) rover as Perseverance. Previously the rover was known by its code name as Mars 2020. The name was given by Alexander Mather, 7th standard student and was declared by Nasa’s director of science, Thomas Zurbuchen at an event in Lake Braddock Secondary School in Burke, Virginia. The Perseverance rover will be the 5th exploratory vehicle after Sojourner, Spirit, Opportunity and Curiosity.
Great NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson passed away at the age of 101. Johnson’s calculations helped put the first man on the Moon in 1969, but she was under rated until the Oscar-nominated 2016 movie that told the stories of three black women who served at NASA.
NASA’s astronaut Christina Koch came back after an 11-month mission and made world record for the most time spent by a woman in space. She spent 328 days, surpassing the previous record of 289 days held by fellow American Peggy Whitson.