Don't expect much from Ginny. Remember we're talking NASA here - not SpaceX - and they move at a slower pace than a frozen slug. The main aim is testing out the technology. Future missions might be better,, although some of us might be dead and buried by then. Meanwhile, much of the public interest in the landing of Perseverance is disappearing at a fast rate. I'm all for caution - but there's caution and there's NASA. It's not as if we haven't previously had the successful Curiosity mission, for example, which is still in "progress".
Does anyone remember Colin Pillinger (now deceased)? His first job was at NASA, but he became best known when at the Open University and for the daring Beagle 2 mission. He was highly critical of NASA, accusing them of dragging their heels in the search for signs of past life, including deliberately targeting the worst locations. Beagle 2 was done on a shoestring budget. We all thought it had failed, crashing on impact, but photos in 2015 showed it had actually landed safely but sadly with two of the four solar panels failing to deploy - blocking the communications antenna.
Meanwhile - after the "failed" landing, but well before the 2015 photos revealed the actual truth - there was a report by ESA "experts", including "lessons learned", all of which proved to be nonsense.
Colin also gave new meaning to the term "book launch". (Search YouTube.) A colourful character.
mars.nasa.gov
