Perseverance pays off
An illustration of the last, critical stage of Mars Perseverance rover s safe landing. Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech
NASA’s perseverance rover- It started with the type of chatter you might hear from someone setting up a complex sound system.
“Voice check, Smith.”
“Telemetry?”
“I read you…”
Lots of names (not actually named Smith and Jones). Calm, measured voices from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, plus others chiming in by laptop and phone from around the world.
But the calm overlaid an underlying tension.
Because even before the sound checks, there’s also been another bit of control room chatter.
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Museum of Flight Space Mavens Offer Insights from Earth to Mars
Museum of Flight Space Mavens Offer Insights from Earth to Mars
An illustration of NASA’s Perseverance rover landing safely on Mars. Photo NASA.
NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover lands on the Red Planet Feb. 18, and the Museum of Flight is hosting two live, online panel programs to prep and cover the landing with NASA JPL Mars mission engineers. The preview discussion on Feb. 11 includes Mallory Lefland, JPL Flight Controller, who will be on duty with NASA Mission Control for the rover landing; and on landing day, Feb. 18, the program includes Bill Cahill, the program manager for the MR-80 rocket engines that will power the descent stage bringing Perseverance to the surface of Mars. Both programs are free and online.