NASA: ASPIRE test launched to check supersonic parachute
New Delhi : NASA has launched ASPIRE test to check the performance of supersonic parachute in the space. A Black Brant IX sounding rocket carrying a parachute test platform was successfully launched at 6:45 am EST, October 4, from the agency's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, as mentioned in NASA’s official website.
The test was meant to test in the sky where the conditions similar to the entrance of the Red Planet were created. It was intended to imitate conditions that spacecraft will experience during Mars entry, descent, and landing (EDL).
"The 58-foot tall rocket carried the Advanced Supersonic Parachute Inflation Research Experiment (ASPIRE) from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. The mission is to evaluate the performance of the ASPIRE payload, which is designed to test parachute systems in a low-density, supersonic environment," said NASA.
After lift-off, ASPIRE splashed down into the Atlantic Ocean.
The data which are captured by the camera and other instruments will help researchers in the completion of the chute's design for NASA 2020 Mars Rover.
''The payload flew to an altitude of approximately 31.62 miles and then landed in the Atlantic Ocean. The payload is being recovered for data retrieval and inspection," said NASA
NASA is making preparations for Rover mission to Mars, which is scheduled to be launched in 2020. This rover will position a six-wheeled vehicle on the Martian surface which will help to study the rocks on the Red Planet.
Along with the red plant rock information, the rover will also store samples while its return to Earth. It will also enter the Martian atmosphere at over the speed of 12000 mph (miles per hour).
