Program Description
After landing in January 2004, NASA’s Mars Exploration Rovers, named Spirit and Opportunity, continued to operate on the Red Planet throughout 2005, many times longer than their designers and builders had initially promised. WHAT WENT RIGHT goes behind the scenes to present, in the candid words of the men and women who made it happen, why one of the most challenging missions of the entire space age succeeded, when so many other national endeavors have fallen short.

Using exclusive interviews and rare access to revealing footage showing five years of arduous development, rigorous testing and long-range operations on Mars, WHAT WENT RIGHT becomes a case study of the personal and professional qualities it takes to achieve the most difficult tasks: honesty and team-work, persistence and problem-solving.

Taped on location at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in Pasadena, California, and around the nation, the fast-paced program features a large "cast" of diverse personalities who came together under severe time and budget pressures to make the mission work.

WHAT WENT RIGHT is made possible by the National Science Foundation.

The ongoing TO MARS WITH MER education and outreach project is also made possible by NSF, with additional support for interactive broadcasts and on-site events from NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.