‘Nuf said !
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D-day on Mars!
The control room at Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Califormia came alive as the Entry, Descent and Landing team or “blue shirts” monitored the progress of Curiosity rover, as she landed on Mars. The atmosphere was electric, charged with suspense.
Adam Steltzner could be seen walking up and down the floor, while the rest of his team were sitting on the edge of their seats. Meanwhile, the clocks were counting down the seconds and the cold, monotonous voice of the narrator described the events visualised on the screens.
The first applause came when Curiosity entered the atmosphere. A few minutes later, the team exploded again as the confirmation of a successful parachute opening arrived. As calculated, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) was passing over Curiosity at that precise moment and took pictures of the parachute from above.
Moments later, when the free-fall of the spacecraft was under control, the announcement of Powered Flight was heard, which implied a separation from the parachute. Shortly after another burst of cheers came when the crane separated the rover from the jet-pack.
But all that cheering was nothing, compared to the explosion of joy with happy laughs, fists in the air, high-fives and emotional embraces, mixed with the occasional sigh of relief that followed the announcement of MSL Touchdown.
Eight years of hard work of scientific and technical teams in the US and other countries were finally rewarded with the best news they could hear. The proof of their dedication arrived a few minutes later with the first picture from the cameras mounted on Curiosity, which cemented their irrefutable success.
The first picture showed the Martian horizon as seen from inside the Gale Crater. Just a few minutes later, a second image showed one of the wheels of the rover, standing proud on Martian ground.
Although some dust particles appeared on the lens and in front of the camera at first, the view cleared up soon to allow for more pictures from the front and rear cameras.
The celebrations and congratulations continued and extended to the press conference, where program leaders had the chance to shake hands with everyone from their team and journalist from all over the world had the opportunity to ask questions.
Finally, the Entry, Descent and Landing team, in charge of getting the rover to Mars, handed over control of the MSL mission to the Surface Operations Team. From now, they will control and communicate with Curiosity during the duration of the mission, which for the next 2 years will be dedicated to scientific developments.
The celebrations and congratulations continued and extended to the press conference, where program leaders had the chance to shake hands with everyone from their team and journalist from all over the world had the opportunity to ask questions.
The lifespan of MSL is guaranteed for 2 years but designed for 6. Like previous missions it will most likely operate for much longer. Now that Curiosity is on Mars, the most exciting chapter of her history is about to unfold.
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