Yesterday’s 263-foot drive by the NASA’s Opportunity put Mars Rover’s total distance driven at 35.76 km, breaking the 40-year-old record for the greatest distance driven by a NASA vehicle on another celestial body. But Opportunity still hasn’t quite beaten the record set by the USSR’s Lunokhod 2.
The Apollo 17 Lunar Rover was NASA’s previous record-holder, clocking in at 35.74 km driven on the surface of the moon. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory whipped up this chart in honor of Opportunity’s record-breaking trek. Opportunity has Lunokhod 2 in its sights, but Curiosity still has a lot of catching up to do.
Out-of-this-World Records [NASA-JPL via We are star stuff]
