NASA's Perseverance rover sets off-world driving record

NASA's Perseverance rover passed 28.10 miles (45.22 km) on Oct. 11, narrowly beating Opportunity's 28.06-mile record. More than 90% of its distance was covered by the AutoNav autonomous navigation system, which evaluates 600,000 terrain points per cycle.

• Perseverance reached 28.10 miles (45.22 km), edging Opportunity's 28.06 miles
• Over 90% of the distance was driven on AutoNav, versus about 5% for Spirit and Opportunity
• The rover can cover up to 1,351 feet in a single Martian day
• In December 2025 generative AI planned two drives of 689 and 807 feet