On July 30, 2020, NASA’s Perseverance rover was launched into space, marking another remarkable chapter in humanity’s quest to explore the universe. After a 203-day journey across 472 million kilometers, it successfully landed on Mars on February 19, 2021. While the mission itself was extraordinary, what surprised many was the “brain” that powered this advanced rover—a processor originally born in 1998, the PowerPC 750.

The PowerPC 750, once the standard CPU of Apple’s iMac G3, ran at just 266MHz, a specification that may seem outdated by today’s standards. Yet, this humble chip became the foundation for space exploration after being redesigned by BAE Systems to withstand the harshest cosmic conditions. The result was the RAD750, introduced in 2001. Built on a 150nm process with a mere 5W TDP, it was engineered to survive radiation doses of 2,000 to 10,000 grays—equivalent to ten million CT scans—while continuing to function reliably. Priced at $290,000, its value lies not in raw performance but in unmatched resilience.

This choice has proven invaluable. The RAD750 has been deployed in over 100 satellites and deep-space missions, operating flawlessly for nearly two decades. In space exploration, speed and computational power are secondary to reliability and stability. For missions like Perseverance, traveling hundreds of millions of kilometers away, survival under extreme conditions is the only priority. That is why both the Curiosity and Perseverance rovers relied on this trusted processor.

At the same time, China has made significant strides in space-grade electronics. The domestically developed SoC2012 has been integrated into Loongson CPUs, FPGAs, ASICs, and high-end payload microwave devices, achieving full autonomy and control in critical chip technologies. This represents not only scientific progress but also a strategic advancement in technological independence and national security.

From Apple’s PowerPC 750 to the space-hardened RAD750, and from there to China’s SoC2012, each milestone demonstrates humanity’s unyielding spirit of exploration. These chips are more than just silicon—they embody innovation, perseverance, and the drive to push beyond limits. Whether it is an “old chip conquering Mars” or new-generation processors paving the way forward, they all contribute to the unfolding story of human exploration in space.