Feb. 4, 2004
GW Plays Role in Rover Mission
Reseachers Team with NASA/Langley to Analyze Atmospheric
Entry on Mars and Reconstruct Trajectory of Mars Spirit and
Opportunity Rovers
By Matthew
Lindsay
GW researchers associated with NASAs Langley Research Center
in Hampton, VA, are playing a major role in the Mars Exploration Rover
mission by studying atmospheric entry and trajectory data from the Spiritand
Opportuntiy rovers. Spirit successfully landed on Mars
on Jan. 4 after seven months of space travel.
Members of GW at Langley, previously part of the GW/NASA Joint Institute
for Advancement of Flight Sciences (JIAFS), are involved with the entry,
descent and landing portion of the mission. This phase begins when the
spacecrafts reach Mars atmosphere at approximately 80 miles above
the surface of the planet and ends when the landers are safely on the
surface of Mars. The descent through the Martian atmosphere takes approximately
six minutes, during which time the spacecraft slows from approximately
12,000 to zero miles per hour.
Researchers analyzed accelerometer and gyro readings from Spirits
trip through the Martian atmosphere and found NASAs temperature
predictions for the Martian atmosphere to be right on track.
GW researchers are continuing to reconstruct the trajectory of Spirit
to compare it with NASAs planned trajectory and study what made
Spirits entry, descent and landing on Mars so successful.
We are studying the parameters which made the Spirit landing successful
in hopes of duplicating conditions the second time around, as well as
comparing actual and predicted temperature measurements of the Martian
atmosphere, said Bob Blanchard, lead research scientist in the GW
group. These are two very significant tasks. Obviously getting Spirit
and now Opportunity safely on Mars is critical to the Mars Exploration
Rover mission.
Send feedback to: bygeorge@gwu.edu
|
|
|