Curiosity spacecraft heads to Mars
Just after 10 am local time, the Curiosity spacecraft lifted off from the Kennedy Space Centre aboard an Atlas V rocket carrying with it the biggest rover to travel to Mars. The rover, named Curiosity, stands about 3 metres or 9.8 feet tall and has an arm that extends 2 metres. A small nuclear reactor will power the laboratory on Curiosity. The rover will reach Mars in the summer.
Atlas V carrying Curiosity-NASA image
The Rocket
As mentioned above, an Atlas V rocket was used to launch Curiosity on its journey to Mars. The Atlas V is an expendable launch system operated by the joint venture United Launch Alliance.
It uses a Russian-built RD-180 kerosene and liquid oxygen engine for its first stage. An American-built RL10 liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen is used for the upper stage. For this flight strap-on solid rocket boosters were used.
The Atlas V had it’s first flight in August of 2002.
The Curiosity Spacecraft
Curiosity will move around Mars investigating the ability of the planet to sustain microbial life. A couple of instruments on Curiosity will be able to study rocks up close. A drill, a scoop and a laser will allow the rover to physically alter samples.
There is a Canadian contribution on the rover. An instrument called the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer, designed by Professor Ralf Gellert of the University of Guelph. It will be used to analyze Martian soil and rocks for certain chemical elements.
The rover will spend at least two years exploring the Gale Crater on Mars. The site was chosen due to its richness and minerals and higher possibility of discovering life. Curiosity is expected to travel at least 19 kilometres during its mission.
Successfully landing a craft on Mars has proven to be very difficult. So far only the United States has been able to do it. The Americans first accomplished this with the landing of the Viking spacecraft in 1976.
Due to its massive size, Curiosity will be lowered to the Martian surface on tethers hanging from a jet pack. This is similar to way a parachute is used on Earth. This new method of landing differs from the air bag approach used on the much smaller Spirit and Opportunity rovers back in 2004.
RSS feed from the mission
Below are the last three RSS feeds from the mission. If you are interested in displaying the RSS feed in your own reader simply enter this url: http://www.nasa.gov/rss/msllaunch_update.xml
"Our spacecraft is in excellent health and it's on its way to Mars," said Pete Theisinger, Mars Science Laboratory Project Manager from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. He thanked the launch team, United Launch Alliance, NASA's Launch Services Program and NASA's Kennedy Space Center for their help getting MSL into space.
"We are ready to go for landing on the surface of Mars, and we couldn't be happier," said John Grotzinger, Mars Science Laboratory Project Scientist from the California Institute of Technology. "I think this mission will be a great one. It is an important next step in NASA's overall goal to address the issue of life in the universe."
Grotzinger added, "It is important to distinguish that as an intermediate mission between (Mars Exploration Rovers), which was the search for water, and future missions, which may undertake life detection, our mission is about looking for ancient habitable environments."
"Science fiction is now science fact," said Doug McCuisition, director of the Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters. "We're flying to Mars. We'll get it on the ground... and see what we find."
A post-launch news conference originating from NASA's Kennedy Space Center is coming up at 12:30 p.m. Watch it live on NASA TV at http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.
Stay tuned for an update regarding acquisition of signal from the Mars-bound spacecraft.
A post-launch news conference originating from NASA's Kennedy Space Center is coming up. Watch it live on NASA TV at http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.
