Far too little attention has been afforded the remarkable mission of NASA’s Mars rover, named Perseverance, which successfully was launched July 30 from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

NASA’s succession of Mars rovers already has been one of the great triumphs of the Space Age, far exceeding their original missions. Perseverance, though, is designed to extend those triumphs by, well, a whole new dimension. If it is successful, Perseverance will package Martian rock, soil, and maybe even signs of life, for eventual transport back to planet Earth on a future mission.