# Exploring Mars — Mars rovers and environments > Interactive 3D Mars rover exploration and virtual Martian environment. (iPhone/iPad app by Jet Propulsion Laboratory.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/exploring-mars/id6475634958 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Jet Propulsion Laboratory](https://appshunter.io/developer/347075767) - Category: Education, Reference - Price: Free - Age rating: 4+ - Requires: iOS 2.0 · 2.5 GB - Languages: American English - Released: 2024-01-26 - Data updated: 2026-06-04 - Monetization: free - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/exploring-mars/id6475634958/reviews.md ## What is Exploring Mars? Meet NASA's Perseverance Rover, on a mission to explore the surface of Mars. Perseverance launched from Florida in 2020 and landed on Mars on February 18, 2021. The rover is collecting samples and analyzing the geology, atmosphere and chemistry of Mars to search for signs of past life in and around Jezero Crater. Launch the Exploring Mars app to bring Perseverance into the room with you. Select key parts of the rover to view photographs and specifications plus learn how they contribute to the groundbreaking science of NASA's Mars Exploration Program. Resize the rover from a small model you can rest on your lap to actual size, and move it anywhere in your space. When you're ready for travel, tap "Take me to Mars" to stand next to Perseverance in Jezero Crater – a faithful reconstruction made from the rover's actual images and data. Stand next to our rover on Mars and fully immerse yourself in the sights and sounds of our nearest planetary neighbor, featuring audio recorded on Mars by Perseverance and the Insight lander. ## Key features - 3D Perseverance Rover model - Interactive rover parts and specs - Augmented reality placement - Virtual Jezero Crater environment - Authentic Martian audio - Educational mission details ## Recent user reviews (5 of 5) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/exploring-mars/id6475634958/reviews.md ### 5/5 — Stunning *2025-03-12* The Martian environment is wonderful and the interactive material on the Rover is informative and provided in an easy to use manner. Kudos to JPL! ### 2/5 — After a few rotations the rotation goes wild *2024-03-17* Hello, I never thought that the rover is this huge 😃 The problem is that after a few rotations the rotation gets out of control and is not usable anymore because even just a tap with no movement results in ultra fast spinning of the rover 😵‍💫 I am on visionOS 1.1 **Developer response:** We just released an update that should make interactions with the rover much more manageable. Please give it a try if you can and let us know how it goes for you? ### 5/5 — Nice experience *2024-03-11* Nice experience of the Mars rover. Well done for the first version. Looking forward to more! ### 5/5 — Absolutely love this experience *2024-03-05* The only flaw is you used FaceTime call answer and call end sounds for selecting a part to learn more about and closing the window with part details, respectively. It was very anxiety inducing the first time because I thought my Vision or another device accidentally answered or placed a call, which pulled me right out of the immersion you’ve worked hard and otherwise done a fantastic job of providing us with. The only way this could be cooler is if you added a Mars environment we could fade in or out of like Apple’s Moon environment. ### 4/5 — More environments pleas!!! *2024-02-03* Really looking forward to some mars environments being added soon! ## Frequently asked questions about Exploring Mars ### What is the main purpose of Exploring Mars? Exploring Mars allows users to interact with a 3D model of NASA's Perseverance Rover, learn about its mission, and experience a virtual reconstruction of the Martian surface in Jezero Crater. ### What kind of educational content does Exploring Mars offer? The app provides photographs and specifications of the rover's key parts, explaining how they contribute to scientific analysis and the search for past life on Mars, aligning with NASA's Mars Exploration Program. ### Can I see the Perseverance Rover in my own space with Exploring Mars? Yes, the app utilizes augmented reality to let you launch the Perseverance Rover into your room, resize it from a small model to actual size, and move it around your environment. ### What is the virtual environment in Exploring Mars like? You can tap 'Take me to Mars' to stand next to Perseverance in Jezero Crater, a reconstruction based on actual images and data from the rover. It features sights and sounds recorded on Mars. ### Does Exploring Mars require an internet connection to play? The provided data does not specify offline capabilities. However, given the nature of AR and detailed reconstructions, an internet connection may be required for full functionality. ### How often is Exploring Mars updated? The app was last updated on February 19, 2025, indicating active development. Version 2.0 was released on January 26, 2024. ### What age rating is Exploring Mars suitable for? Exploring Mars has an age rating of 4+, making it suitable for young learners and families interested in space exploration. ### Does Exploring Mars contain advertisements? No, the application data indicates that Exploring Mars does not contain advertisements. ## Version history (last 5 releases) ### 2.0 — 2025-02-19 Stand on Mars with the Perseverance rover and immerse yourself in a vista created from her own images taken in Jezero Crater! If you turn up the volume, you can listen to the sounds of Mars that she recorded through her microphone. ### 1.2.0 — 2024-06-08 Enjoy the incredibly detailed and beautiful Perseverance rover model with this update. ### 1.1.0 — 2024-03-29 * Browse the list of rover parts and go in depth to learn about them * User experience refinements: everything in one window so there is less to manage and one convenient place to find everything! * Use pinch to zoom gesture to adjust the rover size if you find that more intuitive. The zoom slider is still there if you prefer that. ### 1.0.3 — 2024-02-01 Content updates ### 1.0.2 — 2024-01-31 Content updates ## More apps by Jet Propulsion Laboratory - [Space Images](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/space-images/id347075764) - [Earth-Now](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/earth-now/id494633346) - [NASA Be A Martian](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nasa-be-a-martian/id543704769) - [NASA Selfies](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nasa-selfies/id1423796149) - [Spacecraft AR](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spacecraft-ar/id1452909829) - [NASA SpaceTime](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nasa-spacetime/id1553555795) All apps by Jet Propulsion Laboratory: https://appshunter.io/developer/347075767 --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-04.*