From the July 2016 issue

Martian driving record

The rovers just keep roving.
By | Published: July 11, 2016 | Last updated on May 18, 2023
ASYDG0716_125rovers
The Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, had a planned mission lifetime of 90 sols (martian days). Spirit sent its last communication on sol 2,210, and Opportunity continues trekking at well over 4,000 sols.
Astronomy: Rick Johnson after NASA/JPL-Caltech
Red Planet rovers. Four Mars rovers make up the Red Planet’s robotic population, and two of them are still active. Opportunity holds the distance record by far, having roved more than a marathon length in its more than 12 years exploring an alien world. Curiosity has a lot of driving to do to catch up.