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Mohamed Obeid and NASA engineers are now focusing on the development of a rocket that will head to Mars in 2028 to receive samples collected by Perseverance.
Tunisian space researcher at the US Space Agency (NASA) Mohamed Obeid is one of the direct supervisors of the manufacturing and development of the “Perseverance Rover”, which successfully landed on Mars, in a scientific feat unprecedented in the search for possible effects of life on the red planet.
The deputy chief engineer of the “Mars 2020” project – in his private statement to Al-Jazeera Net, by telephone – says that the dream of people going to the surface of Mars is not impossible, but it also requires a deep and careful. short and long term studies, starting first by examining the possibility of past life opportunities on this planet.
Obaid points out that the biggest challenge the team faced, on the tedious 7th trip to Mars, was the rugged terrain the Perseverance vehicle landed on, which is the “Jizero” crater, which is a ancient lake that existed about 3.9 billion. years ago.
Obaid explained that the Perseverance trip to Mars will be followed by other trips to explore the signs of life on the planet (Al-Jazeera Net)Oxygen generation
Our interlocutor describes two basic missions after Mars. The first is to collect Martian rocks and sediments and store them in tubes for later return to Earth, and the second will involve the conversion of carbon dioxide, which is abundant in the planet’s atmosphere, into oxygen.
And the generation of oxygen from carbon dioxide on the surface of Mars is the biggest challenge, as the Tunisian space scientist points out, because this step will be crucial in future planning to send people to the surface of Mars as alternative to robots in 2030.
In addition to the precedent of transporting the spacecraft with microphones to record sound on the surface of Mars, Obaid points out that the Perseverance vehicle is equipped with an “Ingenioti” helicopter weighing no more than 5 pounds, loaded with solar panels, to fly to Mars, in a virtual tour visible in the coming days in order to explore it.
Ebeid says that he, along with a team of engineers from NASA, is now engaged in the manufacture and development of a new rocket that will head in 2028 to Mars to receive the rock and bacterial samples that the “Perseverance vehicle” “was instructed to prepare in tubes and then bring it back to the surface of the Earth to perform the necessary tests, and to find out the extent of the effects of previous life. In the red planet.
Tunisian space researcher hours before Perseverance to Mars launch (Al-Jazeera Net)With arab hands
It should be noted that the Tunisian scientist has also made several scientific contributions since his arrival at the US Space Agency in 2004, in particular the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which was entrusted with the function of design, construction, operation and of driving robotic space vehicles directed towards the planets.
Obeid calls on young Tunisians and Arabs to believe in their abilities and adhere to their dreams and that nothing is impossible. The son of Sfax, in southern Tunisia, recalls the tragic accident of the explosion of the American space shuttle “Challenger” in 1986, during which 7 astronauts were killed.
He added: “This tragic space accident had a big impact on me, and one of the reasons for my entry into the field of space engineering, I said at the time that I wanted to work someday at NASA to resolve the problem that arose in the doomed shuttle to prevent it from happening again. “
Obeid hopes that he and the rest of the Arab scientists at NASA will pave the way for a new generation of compatriots who dream of going to Mars in 2030, adding: “Of course I hope he will be Tunisian.”
This, along with the flight of the Spacecraft Perseverance and its arrival on Mars on February 18, was followed by media and popular attention, from Arabs in general and Tunisians in particular, who celebrated on social media their contribution. compatriots to this unprecedented scientific achievement. .
It should be noted that Tunisia is on a date next March, coinciding with the anniversary of independence, with a historical scientific and spatial achievement, represented by the launch of the first Tunisian satellite “Challenge 1” which was made with 100% Tunisian capacities and expertise. .
A few days ago, the Tunisian “Internet of Things” satellite was delivered to the Russian company promising to launch (GlavKosmos), placed in the launch capsule, and put into service for launch into space.
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