Elpis

Out of Pandora’s Box came death, greed, disease, war, and hatred. What remained was Elpis, the spirit of hope. Throughout history, it is clear that those spirits that were released are representative of us, seen in the pollution we caused, mass death in our increasingly deadly wars, and conquest to fulfill our desires. In contrast, though, hope has remained. It may not have been as resounding as those spirits who were initially released, but it still remained, fueling our innovation and dreams. It led us to develop planes, computers, the green revolution, electron microscopes, rockets, supersonic jets, and near-autonomous cars. Hope has driven us to do wondrous things, and the search for past life and Mars’ future potential for life is an extension of that hope. So whatever the 2020 Mars Rover is called, it represents our dreams, it will be a manifestation of our spirit of hope, our Elpis.