MARS EXPLORATION PROGRAM NSTA/ITEA/NASA-NES ROBOTICS INSTITUTE Sheri Klug Mars Space Flight Facility Arizona State University Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Earth / Mars Comparison

EarthMars ? shape color size temperature atmosphere polar caps magnetic field life weather water

Simple Facts About Mars Diameter: 6794 km (53% of Earth mi) Mars Day:24 hours, 39.5 minutes Mars Year:687 Earth Days Atmosphere:95% carbon Dioxide, 3% nitrogen Gravity:38% of Earth Temperature: -140C to 20C (-220F to 68F)

What is the main objective for the exploration of Mars? (Poll question)

Characterize the Geology Determine if Life Ever Arose on Mars Characterize the Climate Prepare for Human Exploration When? Where? Form? Amount? MARS SCIENCE STRATEGY: Follow the Water! MARS SCIENCE STRATEGY: Follow the Water! Common Thread LIFE CLIMATE GEOLOGY HUMAN

Water is key to life as we know it on Earth.

Mars Exploration Program Timeline

How often does NASA launch a spacecraft to Mars? (Poll question)

MGS has returned more images than all past Mars missions combined… so far! Mars Global Surveyor (MGS)

Science Results Discovered water ice in the upper few feet of the surface, at near the poles Tracked dramatic seasonal changes, such as the comings and goings of polar ice, clouds and dust storms. Created maps showing radiation and minerals Mars Odyssey

Opportunity Landed: January 24, 2004 Currently Sol 496 Spirit Landed: January 3, 2004 Currently Sol 517 Mars Exploration Rovers

Opportunity Rover Rolling Again!

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter represents the “next generation” of Mars orbiters.

MRO at Kennedy Space Center Clean Room

The Atlas V rocket will launch MRO into space.

Atlas 5 Rocket: Stage 1 blasts off from Earth and Stage 2 powers the spacecraft onto a precise trajectory toward Mars. Stage 1 Atlas booster MRO spacecraft Protective nose cone Stage 2 Centaur engine

As with any Mars mission, just getting to the target is half the battle. MRO has many obstacles to overcome…

Obstacle_01: Launch Sitting on top of a giant, controlled explosion, the spacecraft is subjected to intense vibration and incredible acoustic rumbling from the violent force of the rocket.

Obstacle_02: Cruise For seven months, the orbiter travels through the freezing vacuum of interplanetary space. Throughout the 300-million-mile journey, MRO is susceptible to damaging solar particles that can be spewed from the Sun without warning.

< start orbit insertion < closest approach < end orbit insertion March_2006 Obstacle_03: Orbit Insertion At the precise moment, MRO must execute a 25- minute rocket burn to slow down enough to be captured into orbit. As the spacecraft passes on the far side of Mars, engineers on Earth face complete radio silence.

Obstacle_04: Aerobraking Streaking across the Martian sky, MRO dips into the atmosphere to trim its orbit to the precise path. Come in too high, and the thin atmosphere isn’t enough to slow down the spacecraft… too low, and the intense friction destroys the spacecraft.

Obstacle_04: Aerobraking, Cont. This high-friction, high-intensity process repeats over 500 times! Each successive dip into the atmosphere tightens up the orbital path until the spacecraft is ready to begin its science mission.

In planning a mission to Mars, what is the most mission critical part of the procedure? (Poll question)

MRO – Searching for the Water SHARAD: Shallow Radar Instrument Objective: Penetrates the ground to search for water ice at depths greater than three feet. CRISM Spectrometer Objective: Analyzes the surface, creating a color map of mineral deposits that indicates where water recently lay.

Where is the next landing site for future habitat-seeking rover missions? CTX camera: Context camera Objective: Provides wide area views to give context to high- resolution data from other instruments. HiRISE camera: High-res camera Objective: Zooms in on landforms and debris in areas where water once flowed.

MRO will return a lot of data…. MRO will return 34 terabits of data -- equivalent to about 1,000 DVDs.

Classroom resources to reinforce STEM learning available Mars Robotics Education Poster & Activities

Rock Around The World Send Us Your Rocks! ~ 6400 Rocks Received

The Imagine Mars Project is a science, technology and arts initiative that guides students to create a community on Mars. This program ties to NASA’s long-term vision for human exploration. Inner City Student Mars Mural On Elementary School Wall Mars Gravity Science through Dance Student Concepts of Mars Colony Students with Art Projects SCIENCE THROUGH ARTS & HUMANITIES

Why is NASA interested in having students participate in their missions? (Poll question)

Mars Websites htttp://marsbound.asu.edu