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Explore This Section Perseverance Home Mission Overview Rover Components Mars Rock Samples Where is Perseverance? Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Mission Updates Science Overview Objectives Instruments Highlights Exploration Goals News and Features Multimedia Perseverance Raw Images Images Videos Audio More Resources Mars Missions Mars Sample Return Mars Perseverance Rover Mars Curiosity Rover MAVEN Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mars Odyssey More Mars Missions Mars Home 3 min read
An Update From the 2025 Mars 2020 Science Team Meeting
A behind-the-scenes look at the annual Mars 2020 Science Team Meeting
Members of the Mars 2020 Science Team examine post-impact sediments within the Gardnos impact structure, northwest of Oslo, Norway, as part of the June 2025 Science Team Meeting. NASA/Katie Stack Morgan Written by Katie Stack Morgan, Mars 2020 Acting Project Scientist
The Mars 2020 Science Team gathered for a week in June to discuss recent science results, synthesize earlier mission observations, and discuss future plans for continued exploration of Jezero’s crater rim. It was also an opportunity to celebrate what makes this mission so special: one of the most capable and sophisticated science missions ever sent to Mars, an experienced and expert Science Team, and the rover’s many science accomplishments this past year.
We kicked off the meeting, which was hosted by our colleagues on the RIMFAX team at the University of Oslo, with a focus on our most recent discoveries on the Jezero crater rim. A highlight was the team’s in-depth discussion of spherules observed at Witch Hazel Hill, features which likely provide us the best chance of determining the origin of the crater rim rock sequence.
On the second day, we heard status updates from each of the science instrument teams. We then transitioned to a session devoted to “traverse-scale” syntheses. After 4.5 years of Perseverance on Mars and more than 37 kilometers of driving (more than 23 miles), we’re now able to analyze and integrate science datasets across the entire surface mission, looking for trends through space and time within the Jezero rock record. Our team also held a poster session, which was a great opportunity for in-person and informal scientific discussion.
The team’s modern atmospheric and environmental investigations were front and center on Day 3. We then rewound the clock, hearing new and updated analyses of data acquired during Perseverance’s earlier campaigns in Jezero’s Margin unit, crater floor, and western fan. The last day of the meeting was focused entirely on future plans for the Perseverance rover, including a discussion of our exploration and sampling strategy during the Crater Rim Campaign. We also looked further afield, considering where the rover might explore over the next few years.
Following the meeting, the Science Team took a one-day field trip to visit Gardnos crater, a heavily eroded impact crater with excellent examples of impact melt breccia and post-impact sediment fill. The team’s visit to Gardnos offered a unique opportunity to see and study impact-generated rock units like those expected on the Jezero crater rim and to discuss the challenges we have recognizing similar units with the rover on Mars. Recapping our Perseverance team meetings has been one of my favorite yearly traditions (see summaries from our 2022, 2023, and 2024 meetings) and I look forward to reporting back a year from now. As the Perseverance team tackles challenges in the year to come, we can seek inspiration from one of Norway’s greatest polar explorers, Fridtjof Nansen, who said while delivering his Nobel lecture, “The difficult is that which can be done at once; the impossible is that which takes a little longer.”
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Dave Gallagher will become the director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California on Monday, June 2. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech The following is a statement from acting NASA Administrator Janet Petro on the appointment of David Gallagher as director of the agency’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California. NASA JPL announced Wednesday Laurie Leshin would step down effective Sunday, June 1.
“Laurie Leshin’s leadership at JPL has been nothing short of extraordinary. She brought a sharp scientific mind, a strong sense purpose, and a clear vision that helped propel the lab forward during a pivotal time. From groundbreaking missions to remarkable technological milestones, Laurie advanced JPL’s legacy of exploration and innovation. We are grateful for her service and wish her the very best as she continues to inspire in the next phase of her career.
“I’m equally confident in Dave Gallagher’s ability to lead JPL’s next chapter. He brings decades of experience, a steady hand, and a deep understanding of what makes JPL unique. With Dave at the helm, JPL remains well-positioned to continue delivering for NASA and the nation – pushing the boundaries of science and discovery for the benefit of all.”
For more information about NASA, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov
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Bethany Stevens / Amber Jacobson
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
bethany.c.stevens@nasa.gov / amber.c.jacobson@nasa.gov
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Last Updated May 07, 2025 EditorJennifer M. DoorenLocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
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By NASA
Dave Gallagher will become the director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California on Sunday, June 1. NASA/JPL-Caltech Laurie Leshin has decided to step down as director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory on Sunday, June 1. David Gallagher, who has been serving as the Lab’s associate director for Strategic Integration, has been selected by Caltech to lead the federally funded research and development center. Caltech manages JPL for NASA.
A distinguished geochemist, Leshin was named by Caltech to lead the lab in early 2022. Her career has spanned academia and senior positions at NASA. Several NASA missions managed by JPL have launched under her leadership, including EMIT, SWOT, Psyche, PREFIRE, Europa Clipper, and SPHEREx, with the NASA-Indian Earth satellite NISAR set for a June launch. In addition, JPL has advanced the development of NASA’s asteroid-hunting NEO Surveyor mission as well as the trio of CADRE lunar rovers, and it delivered the Coronagraph Instrument, a technology demonstration with NASA’s forthcoming Roman Space Telescope.
“I am proud of the many things JPL has accomplished over the past three years,” said Leshin. “In addition to the long list of missions that have launched or moved toward launch during that time, we saved Voyager more than once and flew into history on Mars with Ingenuity. We have made more amazing scientific discoveries than I can name, including finding potential ancient Martian biomarkers with Perseverance. And we’ve driven the forefront of technology on Earth and in space. I know those achievements will continue under Dave’s capable leadership.”
Leshin, who has also served as Caltech vice president, is stepping down for personal reasons and will remain a Bren Professor of Geochemistry and Planetary Science at Caltech.
“While we respect Laurie’s decision to step away from her leadership position at JPL, we will miss her drive, compassion, and dedication,” Caltech President Thomas Rosenbaum said. “At the same time, we are grateful to Dave Gallagher for his devotion to JPL and his continuing leadership and partnership going forward. Dave’s experience working across multiple government and private sector entities will help secure ongoing support for America’s agenda in space, with JPL continuing to play an essential role.”
Gallagher will draw on his deep experience at JPL to lead the lab into the future. He arrived at JPL 36 years ago, in 1989, and went on to hold numerous leadership positions. Along with having served as the director and deputy director for Astronomy, Physics, and Space Technology, he was manager of JPL’s Advanced Optical Systems Program Office. An electrical engineer, Gallagher also managed the Spitzer Space Telescope and, among other roles, led the team that built and tested the Wide Field/Planetary Camera 2 (WF/PC-2) — a critical instrument that corrected the spherical aberration on NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope.
“Laurie has made a significant impact on energizing and focusing the lab, guiding it back on track after the Covid-19 pandemic. I wish her great success in this next chapter of her career, and I look forward to a very smooth transition at the lab,” said Gallagher. “We have exciting opportunities ahead helping to advance our nation’s space agenda and a fantastic team to help realize them.”
Founded by Caltech faculty and students in 1936, JPL has been managed by Caltech on behalf of NASA since 1958.
News Media Contacts
Matthew Segal / Veronica McGregor
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-8307 / 818-354-9452
matthew.j.segal@jpl.nasa.gov / veronica.c.mcgregor@jpl.nasa.gov
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