Historical photos transmitted from Mars

On May 25 (US time 26/5 hours) unmanned aerial spacecraft explored Mars named Mars Phoenix Lander (Phoenix ship landed Mars) of the United States successfully landed on the north pole of Mars.
> 'Phoenix' probe and fear of failure

The distant guest of Mars

To reach Mars, the Phoenix had to travel in space for 10 months after a 680 million km journey from Earth. This lander is equipped with a machine arm to dig frozen soil and water samples at a depth of about 1 m.

The Mars Phoenix Royal Exploration Program, worth $ 420 million, is led by the University of Arizona, USA, and managed by NASA's Thrust Laboratory.

The Phoenix was tasked with analyzing scientific parameters to see if recently the frozen ice on the surface of Mars had melted.

In addition, the ship analyzed soil samples collected on the surface of Mars to find traces of organic ingredients that once formed primitive life.

The Phoenix ship was not equipped to detect the present life.

Scientists believe that freezing water is buried under the surface of Mars.

Since the successful landing, the Phoenix ship takes several days to fully open the new machine arm ready for excavation of frozen soil and water.

Next, the Phoenix ship will continue to carry out scientific tasks for a period of 3 months on Mars.

The main purpose of the Phoenix ship is to analyze the frozen soil and water on the surface of Mars.

According to the analysis of information from explorers flying around the Martian orbit, scientists believe that there exists a layer of frozen water beneath the surface layer of Mars only about 10 cm. or thinner. Water is an important determinant of life.

NASA Space Center said, experts in the control room of the Phoenix ship in California received the signal from this expedition ship at 6:53 am on May 26 (Hanoi time) reporting that the ship had landed. succeeding in the north pole of Mars exactly as planned.

The adventure is risky

Before landing on the surface of Mars, the Phoenix ship had to undergo 7 minutes of extreme challenges when it had to penetrate the thin atmosphere of the Red Planet.

In the process of this landfall, to ensure a gentle fall to the surface of Mars, the Phoenix must slow down the speed it is flying in the universe from the speed of 21,000 km / h to the speed of pedestrians.

While still a certain distance away from the surface of Mars, the Phoenix ship automatically unleashed an umbrella to prepare to land on the Red Planet.

The upside-down propulsion system helps the Phoenix to slow down to a few meters per second, which is equivalent to the speed of a fast pedestrian.

When it was only a few meters away from the surface of Mars, the Phoenix ship unleashed three struts like three-legged rubber feet to stand on the rocky surface of the Martian surface.

Photograph of the position of 1 of 3 legs of Phuong Hoang ship placed on the surface of Mars.(Photo: NASA)

Historical photos from Mars

At the control center in California, experts tracked the Phoenix explorer landing process thanks to the radio signals that Odysey satellite currently flies around the Mars orbit received from the Phoenix and then transitions. About Earth.

After the Phoenix ship safely landed on the surface of Mars, scientists had to wait for two hours to receive the first historical photos because this ship was transmitted to Earth.

The first series of this explorer ship is transmitted from Mars with more than 40 black and white photos.

These photos allow scientists to check information on the Phoenix ship's machinery to confirm that not all equipment on the expedition vessel is working properly.

For example, a photo shows that some solar panels have not been opened as planned due to heavy dust.

The other photo shows that the Phoenix ship has landed on the Martian surface in a relatively balanced position, tilting only slightly with an angle of ¼ degrees.

The picture further shows that the Phuong Hoang's landing position is a place in a wide valley, the surface is relatively flat, with only small rocks bobbing. This location is near the north pole of Mars similar to the location of Greenland on the Arctic Sea or northern Alaska, United States.

The photos showed the Phoenix's landing position as a place in a wide valley, relatively flat, with only small rocks bobbing.(Photo: NASA)