Studies | 22/09/2014 00:54
rocket that will transport the unmanned probe Maven: “Everything seems to be going well,” said NASA control center after perfect launch spacecraft
Washington – The Maven probe Nasa successfully reached orbit on Sunday Mars , so that it may soon begin its work to study the atmosphere of Mars, one of prerequisites for a future manned mission steps.
NASA has confirmed that the Maven (an acronym for Mars Atmosphere Volatile Evolution) spacecraft has successfully completed the braking process with its six retrorockets.
During the 33 minutes the satellite rocket braked until he got caught by the gravity of Mars in the proper orbit.
After ten months of travel and more than 700 million miles, Maven can start collecting more accurate data about the composition of the Martian atmosphere or the rate at which the planet loses certain gases in space, because it does not have the protection of an electromagnetic field like the Earth.
Thus, scientists can learn if Mars, as it is believed, was a planet full of oceans that was losing water by the constant action of the solar wind and the lack of an electromagnetic field.
The Maven probe will help to better understand the upper layers of the Martian atmosphere and ionosphere as the planet and the effect that the solar wind has works.
The first mission to test the instruments will probe the passage of Comet Siding Spring near Mars next month, a stellar event not initially planned by the responsible mission.
This coincidence will reveal how the passage of a comet so close affects the atmosphere of a planet. The Siding Spring will pass within 70,000 km of Mars.
The study of the atmosphere and climate of Mars will also be useful in the future to prepare a manned mission to the red planet.
The Maven probe sent to the first reading of the outer layers of Mars, is the result of a joint project with NASA to Lockheed Martin, the University of Colorado and the University of California. EFE
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