The Mars rover's name is.... (drumroll) [View all]
Perseverance!
Virginia Middle School Student Earns Honor of Naming NASA's Next Mars Rover
March 5, 2020
RELEASE 20-021
NASA's next Mars rover has a new name Perseverance.
The name was announced Thursday by Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of the Science Mission Directorate, during a celebration at Lake Braddock Secondary School in Burke, Virginia. Zurbuchen was at the school to congratulate seventh grader Alexander Mather, who submitted the winning entry to the agencys "Name the Rover" essay contest, which received 28,000 entries from K-12 students from every U.S. state and territory.
"Alexs entry captured the spirit of exploration, said Zurbuchen. Like every exploration mission before, our rover is going to face challenges, and its going to make amazing discoveries. Its already surmounted many obstacles to get us to the point where we are today processing for launch. Alex and his classmates are the Artemis Generation, and theyre going to be taking the next steps into space that lead to Mars. That inspiring work will always require perseverance. We cant wait to see that nameplate on Mars.
<more>
https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/virginia-middle-school-student-earns-honor-of-naming-nasas-next-mars-rover
Looks like Rover McRoveface didn't make the cut