Perseverance Sets a Mars Driving Record with 90% Autonomous Driving

So this is not just a small update. It is a real milestone for the rover and for space travel more broadly.

Yes, and the striking part is how it got there. About 90 percent of Perseverance’s driving has been autonomous, so the rover has often been driving itself.

Driving itself on Mars sounds almost unreal. How does that work in practice?

It uses cameras on board to look at the ground around it. Then a computer inside the rover processes those images and chooses the safest route across the surface.

So it is a kind of robot driver, but in a very dangerous place.

Exactly. Mars has hazards like large rocks and sandy slopes, so the rover needs to be careful. But it does not have to deal with traffic, road signs, or bad drivers.

That contrast is funny, but also telling. On Earth, we build roads for cars. On Mars, the rover has to make its own path.

That is one reason this record matters. It shows autonomous driving can become much more useful when computers are fast and smart enough.

And the older rover, Curiosity, did not get the same result?

Curiosity had similar imaging and software, but its computer was older. According to the report, only about 10 percent of its driving is autonomous because its processing is too slow.

So the technology itself was there, but the machine could not keep up.

Yes, and that explains the gap. Curiosity has travelled 38.6 kilometres in more than a decade on Mars. Perseverance has reached this record in about one-third of the time.

That is a strong sign of how quickly space technology is improving.

It is. It also shows a wider trend: faster computers can change what machines can do, on Earth and on other planets.

Typhoon Dolphin hits Okinawa and moves toward China

Now we go to Owen, our LinguaWire correspondent for news.

Typhoon Dolphin has hit Japan’s Okinawa island and cut power to at least 44,000 buildings. Officials also say at least five people were injured.

That is a serious hit, even before the storm reaches China.

Yes. The injuries were not life-threatening, but the winds were strong enough to make people fall. There were also reports of trees blown over in Nago city.

What else did the storm do on Okinawa?

Flights to and from Naha International Airport were cancelled, and the airport was closed as the storm arrived. A car was also found overturned and leaking oil in a parking lot.

So everyday life was disrupted very quickly.

Very quickly. The Japan Meteorological Agency said the typhoon had maximum winds of 162 kilometres per hour. It described Dolphin as a "very strong" typhoon.

And now the storm is heading east from Japan?

It is expected to make landfall on China’s eastern coast late on Sunday or early on Monday. In response, authorities in China have shut ports and schools ahead of the storm.

That shows how one storm can affect two countries in a very short time.

Yes, and the timing matters because this is part of typhoon season in the western Pacific. That season usually runs from May to October, so people in the region know the risk is real.

What makes this year different?

Experts say this is a strong El Niño year, which can make storms more intense. The report also says about three typhoons usually hit Japan each year, though many more form in the region.

So people are not just watching one storm. They are watching the wider weather pattern behind it.

Exactly. That is why officials move early: they want less damage, safer travel, and time to prepare before the strongest winds arrive.

First, three words from the Mars story.

autonomous, this means able to work or move by itself. In the story, Perseverance was described as autonomous when it drove itself on Mars. Example: The bus is autonomous and can move without a driver.

hazard, this means something that can cause danger or trouble. In the story, Mars had hazards like rocks and sandy slopes. Example: Broken glass on the floor is a hazard.

processing, this means dealing with information, especially in a computer. In the story, the rover’s computer was processing images to choose a safe route. Example: The phone is processing the photo now.

Now one grammar point: be expected to.

We use be expected to when we think something will happen, but it is not certain.

Example one: Perseverance is expected to pass 45.16 kilometres next week.

Example two: Dolphin is expected to make landfall on China’s eastern coast late on Sunday.

Repeat after me: is expected to pass