Mars Science Lab: Mission Overview, Timeline, Scientific Objectives, Spacecraft, Equipment, Links

1. TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Contents: • Mission Overview • Timeline • Scientific Objectives • Spacecraft • Equipment • Links Image from NASA Artist’s render of MSL on Mars.

2. MISSION OVERVIEW • The Mars Science Lab is a 2009 international effort to study the conditions of Mars and further determine whether it could sustain life. Image from NASA Artist’s render of MSL on Mars. Back to Table of Contents

3. TIMELINE • September or October 2009: MSL launches. • Summer 2010: MSL lands on the surface of Mars. • 2012: MSL will end operations. Image from NASA Back to Table of Contents MSL landing with “sky-crane.”

4. SCIENTIFIC OBJECTIVES • To detect any carbon-based compounds. • To determine whether life could be sustained on Mars. • To study the distribution of water. • To investigate the nature and history of Mars’s atmosphere. • To investigate the processes that formed and modified rocks on the surface. Image from NASA MSL drilling. Back to Table of Contents

5. SPACECRAFT • The rover is twice as long and four times as heavy as Spirit and Opportunity. • Upon landing, MSL will separate from its shell and eventually be lowered by a sky-crane, which will help the rover land softly. Image from NASA MSL’s landing sequence. Back to Table of Contents

6. EQUIPMENT INDEX Equipment Index: • Cameras • Spectrometers • Radiation Detectors • Environmental Sensors Image from NASA MSL Back to Table of Contents

7. CAMERAS • MSL is equipped with three cameras: • The Mast Camera (MastCam) can take high-def images and videos. • The Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) takes close-up pictures of rocks and can identify minerals in samples. • The Mars Descent Imager (MARDI) takes pictures of the surface during the spacecraft’s descent. Image from NASA MastCam Back to Equipment Index

8. SPECTROMETERS • MSL is equipped with four spectrometers: • The Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) uses X-Rays to determine the chemical composition of samples. • Laser-Induced Remote Sensing for Chemistry and Micro-Imaging (ChemCam) uses a laser to vaporize materials and then identifies the type and composition of the rock being studied. • Chemistry & Mineralogy X-Ray Diffraction (CheMin) measures the abundances of minerals. • The Sample Analysis at Mars Instrument Suite (SAM) studies the abundances of various isotopes of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. Image from NASA ChemCam in action. Back to Equipment Index

9. RADIATION DETECTORS • MSL is equipped with two radiation detectors: • The Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) measures and identifies radiation in Mars’s atmosphere. • Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons (DAN) shoots neutrons underground to detect if they are absorbed by water. If there is no water, the neutrons should reflect back at a rapid rate. Image from NASA An illustration of how DAN works. Back to Equipment Index

10. ENVIRONMENTAL SENSORS • The Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) measures atmospheric pressure, humidity, temperature, wind speed and direction, and ultraviolet radiation. Image from NASA REMS Back to Equipment Index

11. LINKS • http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/ • http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/future/msl.html • http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/gallery/videos.html Image from NASA Artist’s render of MSL on Mars. Back to Table of Contents