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)