05-14-2008, 12:10 AM
A short article on the Mars Pheonix lander scheduled for May 25th.
NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander, which launched last August, will finally reach the Red Planet later this month but scientists remain nervous about the extremely complicated mission.
Phoenix is scheduled to enter the top of the Martian atmosphere at a speed of nearly 21,000 km/h on May 25.
In the ensuing seven minutes, the spacecraft will have to complete a challenging sequence of events to slow down before it lands.
At a NASA press conference in Washington Tuesday, Phoenix project manager Barry Goldstein described the landing as "seven minutes of terror."
Phoenix will need to slow to about eight km/h before its three legs reach the ground.
"This is not a trip to grandma's house. Putting a spacecraft safely on Mars is hard and risky," Ed Weiler, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, said Tuesday in a press release. "Internationally, fewer than half the attempts have succeeded."
The biggest risk comes from large rocks on the surface of Mars which could spoil the landing or prevent the solar panels from being able to open.
However, images from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have helped scientists select a low-risk landing site.
"We have blanketed nearly the entire landing area with HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) images," Ray Arvidson, chairman of the Phoenix landing-site working group, said Tuesday.
"This is one of the least rocky areas on all of Mars and we are confident that rocks will not detrimentally impact the ability of Phoenix to land safely."
Phoenix will land farther north on Mars than any previous mission. It will then use a 7.7-foot arm to scoop up samples of underground ice and soil lying above the ice.
Laboratory instruments onboard Phoenix will then analyze the samples.
A Canadian-made weather station and cameras will also be used to gain insight about the environment around the landing site.
( I'm thinking there may be some interesting weather reports coming back from that particular weather station )
"The Phoenix mission not only studies the northern permafrost region, but takes the next step in Mars exploration by determining whether this region, which may encompass as much as 25 per cent of the Martian surface, is habitable," Peter Smith, Phoenix's principal investigator, said Tuesday.
One of the researchers' goals is to assess whether conditions at the site have ever been favourable for microbial life.
The composition and texture of soil above the ice could provide clues as to whether the ice ever melts in response to long-term climate cycles.
Scientists will also be looking at scooped-up samples to see if they contain carbon-based chemicals -- potential building blocks and food for life.
Link
NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander, which launched last August, will finally reach the Red Planet later this month but scientists remain nervous about the extremely complicated mission.
Phoenix is scheduled to enter the top of the Martian atmosphere at a speed of nearly 21,000 km/h on May 25.
In the ensuing seven minutes, the spacecraft will have to complete a challenging sequence of events to slow down before it lands.
At a NASA press conference in Washington Tuesday, Phoenix project manager Barry Goldstein described the landing as "seven minutes of terror."
Phoenix will need to slow to about eight km/h before its three legs reach the ground.
"This is not a trip to grandma's house. Putting a spacecraft safely on Mars is hard and risky," Ed Weiler, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, said Tuesday in a press release. "Internationally, fewer than half the attempts have succeeded."
The biggest risk comes from large rocks on the surface of Mars which could spoil the landing or prevent the solar panels from being able to open.
However, images from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have helped scientists select a low-risk landing site.
"We have blanketed nearly the entire landing area with HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) images," Ray Arvidson, chairman of the Phoenix landing-site working group, said Tuesday.
"This is one of the least rocky areas on all of Mars and we are confident that rocks will not detrimentally impact the ability of Phoenix to land safely."
Phoenix will land farther north on Mars than any previous mission. It will then use a 7.7-foot arm to scoop up samples of underground ice and soil lying above the ice.
Laboratory instruments onboard Phoenix will then analyze the samples.
A Canadian-made weather station and cameras will also be used to gain insight about the environment around the landing site.
( I'm thinking there may be some interesting weather reports coming back from that particular weather station )
"The Phoenix mission not only studies the northern permafrost region, but takes the next step in Mars exploration by determining whether this region, which may encompass as much as 25 per cent of the Martian surface, is habitable," Peter Smith, Phoenix's principal investigator, said Tuesday.
One of the researchers' goals is to assess whether conditions at the site have ever been favourable for microbial life.
The composition and texture of soil above the ice could provide clues as to whether the ice ever melts in response to long-term climate cycles.
Scientists will also be looking at scooped-up samples to see if they contain carbon-based chemicals -- potential building blocks and food for life.
Link
