Soviet Mars 3 mission The first mission to land on the surface of Mars: how did it do it?

Before each landing on Mars, there is a section called 7 Minute Fear. The probe ends when it enters the atmosphere and lands on the probe surface. The YouTube channel reports that without the help of those on Earth, the study would have dropped from a few kilometers per second to zero. Seisho Space.

Today, studies have technologies that can easily land, but in the past, scientists did not have such technologies available. Mission Tuesday 3, this First Landed on the surface of Mars, departing in May 1971. It was launched a few days after the Mars 2 mission, which was almost identical. These missions consisted of a study of the orbit around the planet and a set of landings.

Historical work

Orbital exploration involves photographing the surface and sending scientists information about the planet’s terrain or its magnetic field. Investigation At the same time it sent information back to Earth from the landing block. The landing block is used to photograph the surface of Mars and send scientists information about wind speed, temperature or air pressure.

Soviet travels were ambitious because they were First attempts to land on the surface of another planet. The Mars 2 landing block failed and crashed on the surface of the Red Planet. However, the Mars 3 landing block was the first block to win Landed on the surface.

Landing on Mars is very challenging. The probe should be greatly reduced, and the parachute fitted to it would not be as effective as it is on Earth in the thin atmosphere of the planet. On the other hand, if not protected by a thermal shield, the atmosphere is still dense enough to ignite the probe. This is not an easy task because the Earth’s control panel cannot help Will land faster than the signal to go from Earth to Mars.

The Mars 2 landing block entered the atmosphere Collided at a very sharp angle and on the surface of the planet. Mars 3, on the other hand, entered a shallow angle, which allowed the use of a technique called aerobracking. This is a type of brake that slows down the atmospheric friction rocket, or in this case Mars 3 probe. Aerobracking is an effective fuel saving technique, otherwise braking must be used.

Following that, the landing unit opened the pilot parachute, and when it came down to the speed of sound, it opened the main parachute. Then, the landing module measures its distance from the surface using radar signals. Based on the measurements of this tool, it was possible to take the last landing sequence before the block hit the surface.

Nevertheless, the Mars 3 landing block collided with the surface at a speed of about 70 km / h, but was designed to sustain its impact. However, the landing module only lasted 20 seconds and sent a poor quality photo.

You may be interested