Opportunity passed away two years ago after fifteen years of good and loyal service. The rover had been caught in a global storm and, too tired, it had never been able to recover. But his story is not over.
Good Night Oppy , is a documentary in production from Amazon Studios, Film 45, Amblin Television and Tripod Media. He will revisit the story of Opportunity, one of NASA's Mars Exploration Rovers mission twins. The film, directed by Ryan White, will also focus on the connection established between the robotic explorer and those who have led him all these years.
" I grew up with movies like "ET the Extra-Terrestrial" and "Wall-E", so making a documentary with similar themes of wonder and of respect was a real joy ” , White said in a statement on Friday.
Launched in July 2003, a month after its twin Spirit, Opportunity landed in the Martian region of Meridiani Planum on January 24 the following year. Designed to operate for 90 Martian days (or sols) and travel 1,100 meters, the rover exceeded its life expectancy by sixty times, traveling more than 45 kilometers in total. This is a record.
During his epic, Oppy searched for evidence of the presence of water at sites where conditions might once have been favorable for the emergence of Martian life. Two months after its arrival, the rover also distinguished itself by revealing to its teams that the stratified outcrop on which it had landed was once meandered by currents of water rich in minerals.
Opportunity did not discover evidence of past life on Mars, but it did allow Curiosity, and by extension, Perseverance, to arrive.
The rover unfortunately stopped communicating with its teams on June 10, 2018, after being trapped in an incredibly large dust storm. His last message:"my battery is low, and it's dark" .
Opportunity has been through this before, but the bot has been working "overtime" for a few years. He had then fallen asleep that summer to let the storm pass, and NASA hoped there would still be some juice left to wake him up. For several months, his teams naturally tried to reconnect with him, but without success. The mission was finally abandoned on February 12, 2019.
The Story of Good Night Oppy , according to Amazon Studios, will be that of a robot traveling alone on another planet, but driven by the extreme connection and bond formed between Man and Machine.
“ It was impossible not to fall in love with Oppy's story – a story of hope, ambition, adventure and overcoming challenges. expectations ” , pointed out Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey, co-presidents of Amblin Television.
“ The innovation and determination that made Oppy's journey possible, as well as the spirit of discovery that drives the JPL team, are a source of inspiration ” , explains in turn Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios. " As we celebrate their achievements, we are thrilled to also be working with the extremely talented filmmaker Ryan White and our friends at Amblin Television and Film 45 to bring this heartwarming story to life " .
For this documentary, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which many now know from the Perseverance rover, provided the film crews with never-before-seen photos, also sharing expertise and the knowledge of the engineers in charge of the mission.
