InSight Mars mission nears end
Posted: Sun, May 22, 2022, 9:17 AM ET (1317 GMT)
NASA confirmed Tuesday that the end is in sight for the InSight Mars lander. Project officials said that dust accumulating on the spacecraft's solar panels, along with increased dust in the atmosphere from seasonal changes, mean power levels are dropping to critical levels. Spacecraft controllers will start turning off science instruments and put the lander's robotic arm into a final "retirement pose" in the next few weeks, and operate the main instrument, a seismometer, intermittently through the summer. Power levels will likely cause the spacecraft to cease operations entirely by the end of the year, which NASA had anticipated for some time.
NASA confirmed Tuesday that the end is in sight for the InSight Mars lander. Project officials said that dust accumulating on the spacecraft's solar panels, along with increased dust in the atmosphere from seasonal changes, mean power levels are dropping to critical levels. Spacecraft controllers will start turning off science instruments and put the lander's robotic arm into a final "retirement pose" in the next few weeks, and operate the main instrument, a seismometer, intermittently through the summer. Power levels will likely cause the spacecraft to cease operations entirely by the end of the year, which NASA had anticipated for some time.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
Roscosmos replaces cosmonaut on next Crew Dragon mission to ISS
Posted: Sat, Dec 6 9:45 AM ET (1445 GMT) |
|
news links
|
|
Monday, December 8
Reach for the stars: Astronaut urges Poland to build plan for space tech hub
TVP World — 5:00 am ET (1000 GMT) Government invests €265.1m for space programmes
Delano — 5:00 am ET (1000 GMT) ROSE-L given the shakes
ESA — 4:59 am ET (0959 GMT) Trump’s ‘Golden Dome’ czar says he held talks with 300 companies on secret missile defense shield
Washington Times — 4:57 am ET (0957 GMT) Golden Dome Details Begin to Emerge
Air and Space Forces Magazine — 4:57 am ET (0957 GMT) |
