NASA's MAVEN Spacecraft Reaches Mars
 
Sept. 22, 2014:  NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN)
spacecraft successfully entered Mars' orbit at 10:24 p.m. EDT Sunday, Sept.
21, where it now will prepare to study the Red Planet's upper atmosphere as
never done before. MAVEN is the first spacecraft dedicated to exploring the
tenuous upper atmosphere of Mars.
 
"As the first orbiter dedicated to studying Mars' upper atmosphere, MAVEN will
greatly improve our understanding of the history of the Martian atmosphere,
how the climate has changed over time, and how that has influenced the
evolution of the surface and the potential habitability of the planet," said
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. "It also will better inform a future
mission to send humans to the Red Planet in the 2030s."
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2R4yj7DtQbM&feature=youtu.be
 
This animation depicts MAVEN orbiting Mars. Image credit: NASA
After a 10-month journey, confirmation of successful orbit insertion was
received from MAVEN data observed at the Lockheed Martin operations center in
Littleton, Colorado, as well as from tracking data monitored at NASA's Jet
Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) navigation facility in Pasadena, California. The
telemetry and tracking data were received by NASA's Deep Space Network antenna
station in Canberra, Australia.
 
"NASA has a long history of scientific discovery at Mars and the safe arrival
of MAVEN opens another chapter," said John Grunsfeld, astronaut and associate
administrator of the NASA Science Mission Directorate at the agency's
Headquarters in Washington. "Maven will complement NASA's other Martian
robotic explorers-and those of our partners around the globe-to answer some
fundamental questions about Mars and life beyond Earth."
 
Following orbit insertion, MAVEN will begin a six-week commissioning phase
that includes maneuvering into its final science orbit and testing the
instruments and science-mapping commands. MAVEN then will begin its one
Earth-year primary mission, taking measurements of the composition, structure
and escape of gases in Mars' upper atmosphere and its interaction with the sun
and solar wind.
 
"It's taken 11 years from the original concept for MAVEN to now having a
spacecraft in orbit at Mars," said Bruce Jakosky, MAVEN principal investigator
with the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of
Colorado, Boulder (CU/LASP). "I'm delighted to be here safely and
successfully, and looking forward to starting our science mission."
 
The primary mission includes five "deep-dip" campaigns, in which MAVEN's
periapsis, or lowest orbit altitude, will be lowered from 93 miles (150
kilometers) to about 77 miles (125 kilometers). These measurements will
provide information down to where the upper and lower atmospheres meet, giving
scientists a full profile of the upper tier.
 
"This was a very big day for MAVEN," said David Mitchell, MAVEN project
manager from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland.  "We're
very excited to join the constellation of spacecraft in orbit at Mars and on
the surface of the Red Planet.  The commissioning phase will keep the
operations team busy for the next six weeks, and then we'll begin, at last,
the science phase of the mission.  Congratulations to the team for a job well
done today."
 
Credits:
Production editor: Dr. Tony Phillips | Credit: Science@NASA
 
More information:
 
MAVEN home page -- NASA
 
MAVEN launched Nov. 18, 2013, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in
Florida, carrying three instrument packages. The Particles and Fields Package,
built by the University of California at Berkeley with support from CU/LASP
and Goddard contains six instruments that will characterize the solar wind and
the ionosphere of the planet. The Remote Sensing Package, built by CU/LASP,
will identify characteristics present throughout the upper atmosphere and
ionosphere. The Neutral Gas and Ion Mass Spectrometer, provided by Goddard,
will measure the composition and isotopes of atomic particles.
 
MAVEN's principal investigator is based at CU/LASP. The university provided
two science instruments and leads science operations, as well as education and
public outreach, for the mission. The University of California at Berkeley's
Space Sciences Laboratory also provided four science instruments for the
mission. Goddard manages the MAVEN project. Lockheed Martin built the
spacecraft and is responsible for mission operations. JPL provides navigation
and Deep Space Network support, as well as Electra telecommunications relay
hardware and operations.
 
 
Regards,
 
Roger

--- D'Bridge 3.99
 * Origin: NCS BBS - Houma, LoUiSiAna (1:3828/7)