AI helps NASA's Mars Rover in scientific exploration on the red planet

PIXL, the white instrument at top left aboard NASA’s Perseverance rover (Image Credit - NASA)

The Perseverance Mars Rover Mission of NASA is taking AI help for the exploration of the red planet. For around 3 years rover has been testing the AI to do exploration on Mars to detect crucial minerals and rocks for research purposes.

Currently, AI is being used by NASA to find out the crucial rock samples and to make an autonomous decision about providing real-time analysis of rock samples.

The continuous development and testing done by the space organization is building a smart space exploration future where the "smart" spacecraft having the ability to perform the task autonomously will near the organisation's aim to interpret Mars closer to reality.

NASA rovers use two instruments for detection and analysis purposes: AI and the PIXL instrument. These tools help determine the best places to drill and collect samples.

The instrument’s principal investigator, Abigail Allwood of JPL said “We use PIXL’s AI to home in on key science,” he further added “Without it, you’d see a hint of something interesting in the data and then need to rescan the rock to study it more. This lets PIXL conclude without humans examining the data.”

PIXL (Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry), is an instrument developed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. PIXL is used to test the chemical composition and to provide crucial information on the minerals and rock samples.

Positioned at the end of Perseverance’s robotic arm, the spectrometer, known as PIXL, is attached to the six small robotic legs called a hexapod. Legs are for precise control and stability, which also helps in positioning. The PIXL instrument has a camera that constantly monitors the distance between itself and a rock target, ensuring accurate alignment.

This reveals the Martian land's past conditions, a feature in this instrument known as "adaptive sampling," AI’s role on Mars isn’t limited to Perseverance. About 2,300 miles away, NASA’s Curiosity rover has pioneered another form of AI that enables it to autonomously target rocks with a laser based on their shape and colour.

It then examines the target's PIXL scans to determine which minerals merit further investigation. Amazingly, this all happens in real-time, so the rover doesn't have to contact mission controllers back on Earth.

The rover's scientific investigation is made much more efficient and successful by its increased autonomy, which enables it to make quick judgments and acquire important data right away.

Peter Lawson, implementor of adaptive sampling said, “The idea behind PIXL’s adaptive sampling is to help scientists find the needle within a haystack of data, freeing up time and energy for them to focus on other things,” he further added, “Ultimately, it helps us gather the best science more quickly.” These advancements in AI are crucial steps towards realizing the dream of exploring planets with highly autonomous and intelligent spacecraft.