Cameras on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have taken pictures of the impact sites. When the Mars Rover Curiosity left Earth, it was carrying a cruise stage, whose parts included a sun sensor and star scanner, propellant tanks, and a couple antennae. The craft released the cruise stage, along with two 165-pound blocks of tungsten ballast, to gain some aerodynamic lift right before it hit Mars' atmosphere, preparing for the "seven minutes of terror" it would take to reach the surface. The blocks ...
Cameras on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have taken pictures of the impact sites. When the Mars Rover Curiosity left Earth, it was carrying a cruise stage, whose parts included a sun sensor and star scanner, propellant tanks, and a couple antennae. The craft released the cruise stage, along with two 165-pound blocks of tungsten ballast, to gain some aerodynamic lift right before it hit Mars' atmosphere, preparing for the "seven minutes of terror" it would take to reach the surface. The blocks ...
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