InSight

InSight landed on the flat plains of Elysium Planitia on November 26, 2018, carrying a French-built seismometer so sensitive it could detect ground motions smaller than a hydrogen atom. Placed gently onto the surface by a robotic arm — a first — and covered with a wind shield, it began listening to the interior of another planet.

InSight detected more than 1,300 marsquakes, including a magnitude 5, and the way their vibrations traveled let scientists draw the first true anatomy of Mars: a thinner-than-expected crust, a sluggish mantle, and a surprisingly large molten core. Dust on the solar panels slowly starved the lander, which sent its farewell in December 2022 with its mission accomplished.