NASA is poised to launch its most ambitious robotic rover to Mars on Thursday, opening the next phase of exploration on the Red Planet. The $2.70 billion National Aeronautics and Space Administration mission will seek signs of ancient life on Mars that can be packaged and, for the first time, returned to Earth. It will test ways to extract oxygen from the Martian air for future colonists and try out an experimental helicopter drone that could become the first craft to fly on another planet.

Source: Wall Street Journal July 29, 2020 12:54 UTC