Robot rover cover successful aerial photography
|
Persistence cover (backshell) and fragments photographed from an altitude of 8 meters. A parachute is visible above. provided with screws |
|
<이미지를 클릭하시면 크게 보실 수 있습니다> |
The process of landing a spacecraft on Mars is often referred to as the ‘Seven Minutes of Fear’.
It is nicknamed because it has to withstand extreme heat and speed for 7 minutes before entering the Martian atmosphere and landing. On Mars, where air particles are sparse, the spacecraft does not experience much air resistance, so it accelerates as it approaches the surface. Therefore, once it enters the atmosphere, it slows down with a counter-propelled rocket to avoid the risk of a collision.
As a result, the descent speed of the lander drops from 20,000 km/h to 1600 km/h when entering the atmosphere. After that, the parachute is opened to lower the speed even more, and when it approaches the surface, it gently descends using a connecting line called a sky crane.
The NASA robot rover, Perseverance, which flew 470 million km and reached Mars in February last year, was also able to safely land at a low speed of less than 1 meter per second using this method.
However, after entering the atmosphere, at an altitude of 2.1 km, the spacecraft cover (backshell) separated with the deployment of the parachute collided with the surface at a speed of 126 km per hour.
 |
|
The process of entering, descending, and landing the atmosphere of persistence, called ‘Seven Minutes of Fear’. provided with screws |
|
<이미지를 클릭하시면 크게 보실 수 있습니다> |
Helicopter 26th flight, 8-meter aerial shot
A small helicopter on a mission to Mars, Injinuity, sent a photograph of the crashed persistence cover.
The photo, taken during its 26th flight on the 19th, shows the cone-shaped cover that protected persistence during its descent toward the Martian surface, in a tattered state. Fragments broken by the impact are scattered around the cover, and the parachute used for landing is visible above it. This day was exactly one year since Injinyut’s first flight.
Injinuity flew 360 meters at a maximum speed of 3.8 meters per second for 2:29 seconds on that day. The altitude at the time of filming was 8 meters above the ground.
 |
|
A view of the area where the persistence cover and the parachute fell. provided with screws |
|
<이미지를 클릭하시면 크게 보실 수 있습니다> |
NASA said the aerial photography was planned to gain new implications for the spacecraft’s Mars landing technology, which will be used in the Mars specimen return program in the late 2020s.
Initiative had originally planned to make five test flights, but it has performed better than expected and has flown a total of 6.5km over 27 times so far.
The 27th flight took place on the 23rd. This flight was a recent example to explore the future path of persistence, which arrived at the entrance to the delta of the crater.
By Kwak No-pil, senior staff reporter nopil@hani.co.kr
This article was written thanks to a friend. Become a support member ‘Friend’
We will always be with citizens. Subscribe to the Hankyoreh, become a friend with ‘Stock Sponsorship’!
[ⓒ한겨레신문 : 무단전재 및 재배포 금지]
The categories in this article follow the classification of the press.
The category to which the article belongs is classified by the press.
Journalists may classify an article into more than one category.
