The most recent rover that NASA has sent to Mars is Perseverance, part of the Mars 2020 mission.
Perseverance overview
Perseverance was launched from Earth on 30 July 2020 and landed in Jezero Crater on Mars on 18 February 2021. It is designed to search for signs of ancient microbial life, study the planet’s geology and climate, and collect rock and soil samples for possible return to Earth.
Other active NASA rovers
Curiosity, which landed in 2012 as part of the Mars Science Laboratory mission, is still operating on Mars but was launched earlier than Perseverance. As of late 2025, Perseverance and Curiosity are the two functional NASA rovers on the Martian surface, with Perseverance being the newer arrival.
Why Perseverance is notable
Perseverance carries advanced instruments tailored to astrobiology, including tools to analyze rock chemistry and search for potential biosignatures. It also hosted the Ingenuity helicopter, which performed the first powered flights on another planet before its mission ended in 2024.