2517: Rover Replies

2026-05-15T21:01:28Z

170.85.99.111:

{{comic
| number = 2517
| date = September 17, 2021
| title = Rover Replies
| image = rover_replies.png
| titletext = I'm so glad NASA let you take your phone to Mars!
}}

==Explanation==
The {{w|Perseverance (rover)|Perseverance Mars Rover}} is an unmanned, remote-controlled vehicle set to Mars by {{w|NASA}} to explore the surface and collect and examine samples from the surface of the planet. Due to the public interest in this mission, NASA maintains social media accounts (including [https://twitter.com/nasapersevere?lang=en a Twitter account]) for the rover to keep people updated on it's progress and share images and information. The account is maintained by NASA personnel, but set up as if the rover itself were tweeting.

[[Randall]] points out that this account and it's replies are "the most unexpectedly wholesome place on the internet". Social media is notorious for being awash with harmful and problematic content, or at least people insulting and fighting and generally creating an unpleasant environment. This strip portrays the responses to the ''Perseverance'' account as being almost uniformly encouraging, enthusiastic, and heartwarming. The sole exception is one user trying accuse the rover of being part of some unhinged conspiracy, but they're quickly shut down by the other followers of the account (specifically, Ponytail, who tells that user "we're not doing that here".)

There are a number of reasons why this thread would reasonably be wholesome. One is that most people who would bother to follow such an account are likely to be space exploration enthusiasts, and therefore are most likely excited about the mission, and happy to be watching its progress. NASA in general, and the rover program specifically, aren't particularly controversial, which lowers the likelihood of people going to that thread to stir up arguments. NASA is a government agency, but one that does work that most people support. There are some few people who advance conspiracy theories involving NASA (as portrayed in the strip) but those are small enough in number that they'd be quickly drowned out by the more engaged chorus.

Another factor is the nature of the rover itself. Despite not being human (or even alive), rovers can move, seemingly on their own, and have a form vaguely similar to that of a living creature. This leads a psychological phenomenon of people ascribing human qualities to them (a tendency known as {{w|Antropomorphism}}). We see this in the portrayed comments, with people talking to the "rover" as if it were a person, offering encouragement and praise. The users presumably know that ''Perseverance'' is not alive, but they engage with it as if it were. Because the device isn't actually human, it has little potential to make enemies or do anything controversial, so it has the best of the both worlds, being encouraged like a person, but not being subject to the complexities of humanity.

The final reply is a reference to {{w|Ingenuity (helicopter)|Ingenuity}}, a small helicopter which Perseverance took to Mars as a [https://mars.nasa.gov/technology/helicopter/ technology demonstrator]. It was very successful and completed many flights, [https://mars.nasa.gov/images/mepjpl/PIA24797-Flight12.jpg often taking it quite far from Perseverance] and routinely serving as a scout, surveying the area and helping Perseverance plan it's route. However, to the dismay of many, Ingenuity's mission ended after 3 years due to a [https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/after-three-years-on-mars-nasas-ingenuity-helicopter-mission-ends/ damaged rotor].

==Transcript==
:[A post of a rocky landscape and a close-up of a rock is next to a profile picture of the camera of a Mars rover.]
:Just collected a sample!

:[Comments below. Each comment has an icon of a person or other image next to it and an illegible name above the comment.]
:[face of Cueball-like character]: These pictures are great!
:[curved lines]: I'm so proud of you
:[Cueball-like stick figure]: Wow you know a lot about rocks
:[Megan]: Go go go go go!
:[spiral galaxy-like image]: More propaganda from NASA's 5G vaccine microchip factory
::[Ponytail]: Quiet, we're not doing that here
:[unidentified stick figure]: Hello from Missouri (Earth)!
:[Hairy]: Did you find any skeletons yet
:[Miss Lenhart]: I hope your helicopter comes back!

:[Caption below frame:]
:The most unexpectedly wholesome place on the internet is the replies to NASA's rovers on social media.
{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Mars rovers]]
[[Category:Social networking]]

explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2517: Rover Replies