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Scientists and engineers have a
new plan to get the NASA InSight thermal probe, also called "mole"
dig again on Mars. Part of an instrument called the heat and physics flow
Package of properties (HP3), the mole is a self-hammering point designed to dig
up to 5 meters below the surface and record the temperature.
But the mole could not
dig more than about 30 cm below the Martian surface
since Feb.
28 2019. The support structure of the device
prevents the LG cameras from watching the mole, so the team plans to use InSight
robotic arm to lift the structure. Depending on what they see, the
the team could use the robotic arm of InSight to help the mole later, this
summer.
HP3 is part of
Several InSight experiments, all designed to give scientists
their first look at the deep inside of the red planet. InSight also includes
a seismometer that recently recorded its first marsquake
on April 6, 2019, followed by his biggest
seismic signal to date at 19:23 PDT (22:23 EDT) May 22, 2019 – what is
it is believed to be a magnitude 3.0 earthquake.
In recent months,
tests and analyzes were carried out at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory at
Pasadena, California, who leads the InSight mission and the German aerospace company
Center (DLR), which provided HP3, to understand what prevents
the mole to dig. Team members now believe that the most likely cause is unexpected
lack of friction in the soil around InSight – something very different from
ground seen on other parts of Mars. The mole is designed so that loose soil
around him, adding friction that goes against his recoil, allowing him to dig.
Without enough friction, he will bounce back.
"JPL and DLR engineers
have worked hard to evaluate the problem, "said Lori Glaze, director
of the NASA Planetary Science Division. "Moving the support structure
help them gather more information and try at least one possible solution. "
The lifting sequence will begin in
end of June, the arm grabbing the support structure (InSight performed some
test movements recently). During a week, the arm will lift the
three-step structure, taking pictures and turning them over so that the engineers
can make sure that the mole is not removed from the ground while the structure
is moved. If it is removed from the ground, the mole can not return.
The procedure is not without
risk. However, mission leaders have determined that these next steps are
necessary for the instrument to work again.
"Moving the support
the structure will give the team a better idea of what is going on. But that could
let us also test a possible solution, "said HP3 Main
Tilman Spohn, DLR investigator. "We plan to use InSight's robotic arm to
press the floor. Our calculations have shown that this should add friction to
the ground near the mole. "
A question-and-answer session with team members about the mole and the effort to save it is
at:
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/8444/common-questions-about-insights-mole/
JPL manages InSight for NASA
Direction of scientific missions. InSight is part of NASA's discovery program,
managed by the Marshall Space Flight Center of the agency in Huntsville, Alabama.
Lockheed Martin Space in Denver built the InSight probe, including its
cruising and lander stage, and supports the spaceship operations for the mission.
A number of European partners,
including the French National Center for Space Studies (CNES) and the
Aerospace Center (DLR), support the mission InSight. CNES provided the
NASA's Seismic Experiment for Interior Structures (SEIS), with the
principal investigator at the IPGP (Paris Institute of Earth Physics).
Important contributions for SEIS come from the IPGP; the Max Planck Institute for
Solar System Research (MPS) in Germany; the Swiss Federal Institute of
Technology (ETH Zurich) in Switzerland; Imperial College London and Oxford
University in the United Kingdom; and JPL. DLR provided the heat flow and
Physical Property Package (HP3) instrument, with
contributions from the Center for Space Research (CBK) of the Polish Academy of
Science and Astronika in Poland. Spanish Astrobiology Center (CAB)
provided the temperature and wind sensors.
Media contact
Andrew Good
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California
818-393-2433
[email protected]
Alana Johnson
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1501
[email protected]
2019-104
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