• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Computer Business World News

Computer Business World News

Trending News about Computers, Business and Tech

  • Home
  • Business
  • Careers
  • Computers
  • Tech
  • About/Contact

Perseverance rover about to embark on tricky Mars landing

February 15, 2021 by CBW Reporter

NASA’s Mars-bound Perseverance rover is about to embark on its highly challenging entry, descent, and landing procedure, otherwise known as “seven minutes of terror.”

“Until we get the data that says we’re on the ground safely, I’m going to be worried that we’re not going to make it,” one member of the team said in a recent NASA video (top) about Thursday’s landing.

That seven-minute time period will be a real nail-biter for the team as the spacecraft will be operating autonomously at that stage, performing a number of maneuvers that require precision timing in the face of extreme speed and temperature changes. And on top of that, it has to find a safe spot to touch down.

“There are many things that have to go right to get Perseverance onto the ground safely,” said Swati Mohan of the Mars 2020 Guidance team.

Protected by its all-important heat shield, the spacecraft carrying Perseverance will come “screaming in to the Martian atmosphere at 12,000 to 13,000 mph,” Mohan’s colleague, Chloe Sackier, explained.

Once the speed of the spacecraft has been sufficiently reduced, it’ll deploy a parachute — described as the biggest supersonic parachute ever sent to another planet — to slow it down further.

While the landing procedure is similar in some ways to the one performed by Curiosity in 2012, Perseverance has been equipped with more advanced technology to help it come down safely in a more challenging landing site that includes cliffs, sand dunes, and boulders. The site, Jezero Crater, is an ancient lake bed, and scientists are confident that it offers the best chance of finding signs of ancient microbial life on the red planet, one of the mission’s key objectives.

As it nears the ground, the spacecraft will deploy one of its new technologies, called Terrain Relative Navigation. This is a kind of autopilot system that’s able to quickly determine the spacecraft’s location so it can select the safest reachable landing target within the boundaries of the crater. NASA says the system will be able to change the rover’s touchdown point by up to 2,000 feet (600 meters).

Once the spacecraft has determined its precise location above the Martian surface, it’ll jettison its back-shell and parachute before firing up eight small rockets to help it steer toward the selected landing site. About 20 meters from the ground, the spacecraft will release Perseverance on cables and lower the rover to the surface.

Assuming the landing procedure goes to plan, Perseverance will then set about searching for signs of ancient life, gathering rock and soil samples for return to Earth at a later date, and collecting data for future human exploration of the faraway planet.

For a more detailed look at what looks set to be a roller-coaster ride of a landing for Perseverance, check out Digital Trends’ in-depth article that includes comments from Gregorio Villar, a systems engineer on the the Entry, Descent, and Landing team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

And here’s all you need to know about how to follow NASA’s coverage of the rover landing this Thursday.

Editors’ Recommendations

View Source

Filed Under: Business, Tech

Primary Sidebar

More to See

El futuro de las vacunas depende de algo que escasea: los monos de laboratorio

Mark Lewis estaba desesperado por encontrar monos. Millones de vidas humanas corrían peligro en todo el mundo.Lewis, el director ejecutivo de Bioqual, … [Read More...] about El futuro de las vacunas depende de algo que escasea: los monos de laboratorio

On TV, a Rare Realistic Look at Breastfeeding

Companies are constantly on my case about breasts.As an advertising reporter who happens to be eight months pregnant, I have been targeted … [Read More...] about On TV, a Rare Realistic Look at Breastfeeding

People have spent more than $230 million buying and trading digital collectibles of NBA highlights

Source: NBA Top ShotA LeBron James highlight sold for $200,000. A Zion Williamson edition went for a little less than that. The National Basketball … [Read More...] about People have spent more than $230 million buying and trading digital collectibles of NBA highlights

Footer

SITE INFORMATION

COMPUTER BUSINESS WORLD NEWS

About/Contact

Privacy Policy

Thank you for visiting our website.

Recent

  • On TV, a Rare Realistic Look at Breastfeeding
  • New York Attorney General ready to oversee investigation into Cuomo sexual harassment allegations
  • CDC panel recommends use of J&J’s single-shot Covid vaccine, clearing way for distribution

Search

Tags

4K 5G Belfast black history month 2021 Branding California Careers Clinical Trials Cork Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Coronavirus Risks and Safety Concerns Deaths (Obituaries) Diversity and Inclusion Dublin employers Fashion and Apparel Features Food and Drug Administration Hiring Hollywood (Calif) Instagram Inc IT Leadership Jobs Johnson&Johnson Laptops Maldives Mank Mobile Movies & TV Netflix News Problem Solving Salaries Segal, Fred Shopping and Retail Social Media Streaming streaming quality Technology Industry Travel and Vacations Vaccination and Immunization VFX visual effects VPN Wearables

Copyright © 2021 Computer Business World