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Use NASA Eyes to explore Mars missions in interactive 3D, then open NASA’s downloadable landing-sites map to compare where successful missions touched down. The tools answer different questions: Eyes helps you follow spacecraft, communications, landing sequences, and rover activity; the map gives you a static geographic overview.
How can you explore Mars missions online?
Start at NASA Eyes, a suite of 3D visualizations that runs in a regular web browser and uses NASA data and imagery. Its broad starting point, Eyes on the Solar System, lets you view planets, moons, and spacecraft in a simulated 3D environment, with time controls and mission context. NASA describes it as a way to see spacecraft and their journeys in context; NASA/JPL has noted that it visualizes the same trajectory data used by the Perseverance navigation team to plot the rover’s course to Mars.
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NASA also lists focused Mars experiences on the Eyes page. Pick one according to what you want to understand:
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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute| NASA tool | Interaction and mission phase | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Eyes on the Solar System | Broad 3D exploration of planets, moons, and spacecraft, with time controls | Following spacecraft and getting a wider mission view |
| Mars Relay Network | Visualization of current, past, and future communications between Mars orbiters, landers, rovers, and Earth | Understanding how spacecraft relay data |
| Mars 2020 Entry Descent Landing | Step-by-step interactive simulation of Perseverance’s entry, descent, and landing | Following the landing sequence, rather than comparing landing locations |
| Experience Curiosity | Interactive recreation of selected Curiosity mission days and rover activities on the surface | Exploring rover work |
NASA says Eyes applications run in a regular browser, but browser and device compatibility can change; the page does not guarantee support for every current setup. The exact controls and layout may also vary, so use the live page’s available options rather than relying on fixed menu instructions.
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- HOBBY MODEL KIT – Unassembled model packed in an envelope with easy to follow instructions. Ideal for ages 14 and up.
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- MARS ROVER PERSEVERANCE & INGENUITY HELICOPTER – 4.5 Sheet Model with a challenging difficulty level. Assembled Size: Rover: 4.92 L x 3.54 W x 2.95 H inches. Helicopter: 1.02 L x 1.30 W x 0.79 H inches. 1:30 Scale.
- FROM STEEL SHEETS TO 3D – Pop out the pieces and connect using tabs and holes. Includes illustrated instructions.
- HIGHLY DETAILED ETCHED MODEL – Display your 3D model once completed - collect and build them all.
How do you compare NASA’s Mars landing sites?
Open NASA’s Map of NASA’s Mars Landing Sites. NASA provides it as a downloadable image showing Jezero Crater alongside locations where other successful NASA Mars missions landed. It is a static comparison aid, not an interactive mission simulator; use Eyes for spacecraft context and the map to compare locations.
The accompanying NASA context-map description places the represented successful landing locations across a span from Viking 1 and Viking 2 in 1976 to Perseverance at Jezero Crater. Perseverance touched down at Jezero on February 18, 2021.
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- Model Kit
- May Require Paints and Glues to Assemble
- Accurate Scale Model
- Detailed Instructions Provided
- Decals/Transfers Included
Why did Perseverance land at Jezero?
Jezero is a useful case study for connecting a map location to a mission’s scientific purpose. NASA/JPL describes the 28-mile (45-kilometer)-wide crater as preserving evidence of an ancient lake and delta. Those features made it a promising place to investigate whether ancient microbial life could have existed there. That goal is not evidence that life has been found: the mission’s search for signs of past habitability and life is distinct from a confirmed discovery.
Quick Recap
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A simple NASA Mars exploration workflow
- Go to NASA Eyes and open Eyes on the Solar System for a broad 3D view of spacecraft and mission context.
- Choose the Mars-specific experience that matches your question: Mars Relay Network for communications, Mars 2020 Entry Descent Landing for the landing sequence, or Experience Curiosity for rover activity.
- Open NASA’s Mars landing-sites map and use the downloadable image to compare the geographic placement of successful missions.
- Use Jezero as a case study: connect Perseverance’s landing location with the crater’s ancient lake-and-delta setting, while keeping the mission’s scientific aims separate from confirmed findings.
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