Watch NASA test the Mars Perseverance rover ahead of launch

NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover is getting ready for its big launch day, when it will become the envy of all and leave this cursed Earth behind. But before it can get its ass to Mars, NASA needs to be sure its rover can handle the adventure.

In a new video filmed in late 2019, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory puts Perseverance through its paces to make sure that it’s grown up big and strong. It seems like one giant leap to go from Rover’s first unassisted stand to a driving test within just four months, but apparently rovers mature much more quickly than humans.

Perseverance’s launch window opens July 17. It’s scheduled to land on Mars on 18 Feb. 2021, where it will search for aliens and collect cool rocks to show its parents.