A NASA helicopter took pictures of the equipment that helped the Rover Perseverance land on Mars in 2021. The images show debris, including a parachute, on the floor of the planet Jezero crater. Space debris, left by humans on orbit or on other planets, is a growing concern for space services.
NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter captured a panoramic view of man-made space debris on another planet – the landing gear that helped it, and the Perseverance rover, reach the red planet. The 4-pound Ingenuity helicopter, the first aircraft to fly to another world, spotted and captured images of the wreckage of a dust-covered, orange-and-white parachute and rear cover – or 26-foot air-shield. . The photos, shared by NASA on Wednesday, were taken on the one-year anniversary of Ingenuity’s first raid on Mars on April 19, 2021. With a mission to search for signs of ancient life, Perseverance landed on Mars on February 18, 2021, after a journey of 300 million miles that lasted seven months. NASA’s Perseverance rover lands on the Red Planet on February 18, 2021. NASA / JPL-Caltech Officials at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory said in a statement that the landing gear was strong enough. The rear shell acted as a heat shield the size of an SUV Perseverance (and the helicopter wedged into its belly) throughout its long journey from Earth. On its way to the surface of Mars, the rover developed a parachute to slow it down and stick the landing to Jezero Crater – home to what was once an ancient river delta. While the rear shell ended up in pieces after a fiery sinking at about 78 miles per hour, its protective cover and suspension lines connecting it to the parachute appear intact. Only a third of the 70-foot-wide width is visible in Ingenuity images, but “the canopy shows no signs of damage from ultrasonic airflow during inflation,” the agency said in a statement, adding: “Several weeks of analysis will be needed. for a more final verdict “. The story goes on Since both pieces of material worked as expected, the researchers hope that studying the elements that allowed a safe landing could help them plan future space missions. “Perseverance had the best documented landing on Mars in history, with cameras showing everything from parachute inflating to touchdown,” said Ian Clark, a former Perseverance systems engineer who is now leading the effort to transport samples back to Mars. Land at JPL in Southern California. in a statement. “If they either reinforce that our systems worked the way we think they did or provide even a set of mechanical information data that we can use to design the Mars Sample Return, it would be amazing. And if not, the images are still stunning and inspiring. “
The dilemma with rubbish flying high
The rear shell of the Perseverance rover in the middle of a wreckage on April 19, 2022. NASA officials say the material was durable. NASA / JPL-Caltech Space junk – objects left by humans in our orbit or other celestial bodies, including inactive satellites, burnt amplifiers, screwdrivers, parachutes and other remnants of human space exploration – is a growing concern for . As more satellites are regularly launched into space, the Earth’s orbit becomes more and more full. The problem gets worse every year, as old satellites and other objects collide, creating thousands of debris and launching a chain reaction of collisions. This congestion of satellites surrounding the Earth increases the risk of orbital collisions and jeopardizes future space exploration. “Protecting the expanding space environment is critical,” a report from NASA’s Office of the Inspector General concluded in January last year. “The services that billions of people rely on every day, such as weather forecasting, telecommunications and global positioning systems, require a stable space environment.” However, the constraints that protect the area from pollution are minimal. “My concern and fear is that in 20 years it will be very dangerous to go into space because of pollution,” Ram Jakhu, an associate professor and associate director at the McGill University Institute for Aviation and Space Law, told Wired last year. “We polluted the Earth left, right and center. We will do the same thing in space. There must be an alarm call otherwise things will be serious.” Read the original article in Business Insider
