What are some skywatching highlights in December 2020? Catch the year's best meteor shower, the Geminids, in the middle of the month. Then witness an extremely close pairing of Jupiter and Saturn that won't be repeated for decades. And mark the shortest day of the year on the northern winter solstice.

The ocean-observing Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

To prepare the Perseverance rover for its date with Mars, NASA’s Mars 2020 mission team conducted a wide array of tests to help ensure a successful entry, descent and landing at the Red Planet. From parachute verification in the world’s largest wind tunnel, to hazard avoidance practice in Death Valley, California, to wheel drop testing at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and much more, every system was put through its paces to get ready for the big day.

The Perseverance rover is scheduled to land on Mars on February 18, 2021.

Learn more: https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

The joint U.S.-European Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich is the next in a line of Earth-observing satellites that will collect the most accurate data yet on sea level and how it changes over time. It is the product of a partnership between NASA and ESA, who have joined forces for the first time on an Earth mission. Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich will join a long-standing family of Earth observing satellites from NASA and European partners including EUMETSAT and the French space agency CNES.

The Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite is part of the Sentinel-6/Jason-CS mission, a collaboration among NASA, ESA, EUMETSAT, and NOAA. Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich will launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base no earlier than Nov. 21, 2020.

For more information on the Sentinel-6/Jason-CS mission, go to https://www.nasa.gov/sentinel-6

Credit: NASA-JPL/Caltech/NOAA

What are some skywatching highlights in November 2020? Cool autumn evenings are a great time to look for the Pleiades star cluster. You'll also have a couple of great opportunities to observe the Moon with Jupiter and Saturn. Plus, check out the phenomenon known as Earthshine.

What are some skywatching highlights in October 2020? Not one, but two, full moons; Mars at opposition; and finding the Andromeda galaxy.

What are some skywatching highlights in September 2020? Spot the Moon together with Mars and Venus, along with the flickering star Fomalhaut, which had itself a planet...until it didn't!

What are some skywatching highlights in August 2020? See the Moon posing with various planets throughout the month, plus catch the peak of the annual Perseid meteor shower.

To get ready for the launch of the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover, NASA invited the public to join a global, collective #CountdownToMars project. Fans from around the world recorded videos of their creative countdowns, giving Perseverance a celebratory sendoff for its launch on July 30, 2020. Perseverance is set to land on Mars on Feb. 18, 2021. For more information on the rover’s mission, visit: mars.nasa.gov/mars2020. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA’s Perseverance Rover began its long journey to Mars today by successfully launching from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on a ULA Atlas V rocket. It now begins its seven-month journey to the Red Planet, landing there on Feb. 18, 2021.

NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover is heading to the Red Planet to search for signs of ancient life, collect samples for future return to Earth and help pave the way for human exploration. The rover will carry with it several technology demonstrations including a helicopter, which will attempt humanity's first powered flight on another planet. Perseverance has a new set of science instruments and the ability to “self-drive” on the Martian surface. The Perseverance rover is scheduled to launch from Space Launch Complex 41 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center as early as July 30. It is set to land at Mars' Jezero Crater on Feb. 18, 2021. For more information on Mars 2020, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/perseverance and https://mars.nasa.gov/perseverance Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

In February 2020, NASA’s Perseverance Rover began its long journey to Mars by first traveling across the United States. The rover was built at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, and then carefully packed and flown to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. There, engineers integrated the rover with the spacecraft that carries it to Mars, and the Atlas V rocket chosen to send it on its way.

NASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter will make history's first attempt at powered flight on another planet next spring. It is riding with the agency's next mission to Mars (the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover) as it launches from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station later this summer. Perseverance, with Ingenuity attached to its belly, will land on Mars February 18, 2021. As a technology demonstration, Ingenuity is testing a new capability for the first time: showing controlled flight is possible in the very thin Martian atmosphere. If successful, Ingenuity could lead to an aerial dimension to space exploration, aiding both robots and humans in the future. For more about Ingenuity, visit https://mars.nasa.gov/technology/helicopter/ Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

What's Up for July? How about some moons with those giant planets? Mars after midnight. And are the stars of Mars the same as ours?

What are some skywatching highlights you can see in June 2020? Look for the Summer Triangle rising in the east after sundown, keep tabs on the morning planets and June 20 brings the solstice. Additional information about topics covered in this episode of What's Up, along with still images from the video, and the video transcript, are available at https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/whats-up-skywatching-tips-from-nasa.

Getting a Mars rover built, tested and to the launch pad is a feat that requires the dedication of hundreds of team members. The team behind NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover faced one of its biggest challenges when the coronavirus pandemic struck during a crucial time before launch. The safety of the team members became top priority yet they rose to the challenge of completing the rover on time for its launch date, either by working remotely or under new “safe at work” procedures. They developed an increased appreciation for the name of the rover and in May they created the COVID-19 Perseverance Plate, which is now mounted on the side of the rover. The plate commemorates all those impacted by the pandemic and pays special tribute to front line health care workers.

Perseverance is targeted to launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on July 20, 2020. It will land on Mars on February 18, 2021.

For more information on Mars 2020, visit: https://mars.nasa.gov/perseverance

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Watch as NASA-JPL engineers test the Sample Caching System on the Perseverance Mars rover. Described as one of the most complex robotic systems ever built, the Sample and Caching System will collect core samples from the rocky surface of Mars, seal them in tubes and leave them for a future mission to retrieve and bring back to earth.

The team is on track to launch Perseverance in July 2020 and land in Mars’ Jezero Crater in February 2021. For more information on the Mars 2020 Perseverance mission, please go to: https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/

NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover lives up to its name by enduring a series of tests to prepare for its journey to the Red Planet. Tests for the mission were performed between September and December of 2019 at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.

This video highlights the following tests:

Spin test
Shake test
Mobility deployment test
Rover's first unassisted stand
Solar test
Thermal vacuum test
Sample caching test
Drive test

The launch period for the Perseverance rover opens July 17, 2020. It will land on Mars February 18, 2021.

For more information on Mars 2020, visit: https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020.

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA's Cold Atom Laboratory underwent a major hardware upgrade aboard the International Space Station in January 2020. The mission team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California guided astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir through the installation of the new hardware via live video conference. By chilling atom clouds to just above absolute zero, or the coldest temperature matter can reach, Cold Atom Lab enables scientists to directly observe unique atomic behaviors, helping to answer questions about how our world works at the smallest scales. This new hardware will help expand Cold Atom Lab's capabilities.

For more information, visit https://coldatomlab.jpl.nasa.gov

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech-International Space Station

What astronomy highlights can you see in the sky in May 2020? Venus, Sirius and the Milky Way. With so many of us staying home these days, here's a look into the sky at dusk and dawn with an eye toward the vast stretches of wide open space right above our heads. Additional information about topics covered in this episode of What's Up, along with still images from the video, and the video transcript, are available at https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/whats-up-skywatching-tips-from-nasa