NASA's Perseverance rover has achieved a major milestone on Mars. It has driven the equivalent of a full marathon, covering 26.2 miles (42.195 kilometers) across the Red Planet.
A new image from June 13, 2026, shows the rover as a small green dot on the Martian surface. This was just one day before it officially hit the marathon distance.
Perseverance reached this distance after five years and four months of driving. It hit the mark on its 1,890th Martian day, or sol. This pace is much faster than NASA's previous record holder, the Opportunity rover. Opportunity took 11 years and two months to travel the same distance.
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Start Your News DetoxHiRISE Spots Perseverance from Space
NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) took a remarkable overhead picture. It used its High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera. The image shows the rover and the winding tracks it has left on the Martian surface.
When the picture was taken, the rover was exploring west of Jezero Crater. The mission team calls this area "Arbot."
The Teams Making it Happen
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California manages the operations for Perseverance and the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Caltech manages JPL for NASA. These efforts are part of the Mars Exploration Program under NASA's Science Mission Directorate.
Lockheed Martin Space in Denver built the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. They also continue to support its work. The University of Arizona in Tucson operates the HiRISE camera. BAE Systems in Boulder, Colorado, built the camera.
