Biology
Scientific paper
Jul 1976
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1976s%26t....52....4.&link_type=abstract
Sky and Telescope, vol. 52, July 1976, p. 4-9, 21.
Biology
Mars Landing, Mission Planning, Spacecraft Orbits, Viking Lander Spacecraft, Viking Mars Program, Design Analysis, Elliptical Orbits, Exobiology, Nuclear Power Plants, Soil Science, Spacecraft Antennas, Spacecraft Design
Scientific paper
Major features of design and instrumentation of the Viking lander and orbiter are reviewed, and the landing sequence is outlined. Following a fifty-minute slowdown burn to allow capture by Mars, the spacecraft occupies a highly elliptical synchronous orbit. Final site selection is made on the basis of high-resolution photographs of the planet's surface and results obtained by an infrared spectrometer and infrared thermal mapper. The lander is released in its aeroshell from the orbiter by a signal from earth, and eight small rockets are fired to place it on an atmospheric-entry trajectory. A parachute is deployed at 19,000 feet, the protective aeroshell is jettisoned, and after the parachute release at 5000 feet, the terminal-descent engines are fired. Immediately after the landing the first surface photograph is taken. In a series of subsequent experiments, soil samples are analyzed for traces of carbon-based life forms.
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