NASA sends a probe to study Mars
NASA launched the Maven Monday, November 18 probe for more information on the Red Planet . One of the goals of the U.S. space agency is to understand the loss in space for much of the Martian atmosphere , which allowed the Red Planet to be suitable for life in the distant past .
The Atlas V rocket carrying two floors Maven (March Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution ) , a probe of 2.5 tonnes , was torn from its launch pad at the station of the U.S. Air Force from Cape Canaveral in Florida as planned 13 h 28 local time (19 h 28 , French time) .
If all goes well , Maven , a mission of at least one year, at a cost of 671 million dollars ( 496.5 million euros), will go into orbit around Mars 22 September 2014 after a journey of ten months.
Read also: According to NASA , microbial life could exist on Mars
After orbital insertion and five weeks of calibration instruments , the ship will follow an elliptical orbit half past four that will allow her observations at all latitudes of the entire Martian upper atmosphere at an altitude of 150 km over 6 000 km .
Maven is the second mission of the U.S. Scout program . It is smaller and less expensive Missions on Mars exploration .
ไม่มีความคิดเห็น:
แสดงความคิดเห็น