NASA's Perseverance gets to Mars, rover sends first image

American Space Agency NASA's Mars rover touched down on the Red Planet on Friday after having completed a 203-day, 472 million kilometre journey.

According to mission control at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, the Mars 2020 Perseverance mission landed on Martian surface at 3:55 PM EST (2:55 AM IST).

The robotic explorer which weighs about 1,026 kilograms will undergo several weeks of testing before it begins its two-year investigation of the Jezero Crater. 

The rover will study the rock and sediment of the crater's ancient lakebed and river delta to characterize the area's geology and past climate.

The 45-kilometre wide Jezero Crater is located on the western edge of Isidis Planitia, which is a massive impact basin north of the Martian equator. 

According to scientists, around 3.5 billion years ago the crater had its own river delta and was brimming with water.

The Perseverance has seven primary science instruments, the most cameras ever sent to Mars and a first-of-its-kind complex sample caching system through which Perseverance will collect fossilized remains of ancient microscopic Martian life in the Jezero region.