NASA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration

  1. Content with the tag: “msl

  2. SAM I Am


    Lifting SAM Instrument for Installation into Mars RoverThe Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument, largest of the 10 science instruments for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission, will examine samples of Martian rocks, soil and atmosphere for information about chemicals that are important to life and other chemical indicators about past and present environments. Credit: NASA
    When the Mars Science Laboratory rover ‘Curiosity” lands on Mars in August 2012, its Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument will “follow the carbon” to better understand the past and present habitability of our planetary neighbor. SAM sits in the belly of the rover and will be fed solid samples by the robotic arm. It is one of 10 science instruments on Curiosity that all work together to study the past and present habitability of Mars.

    SAM will have the sensitivity for measuring organic molecules at a level of a few parts per billion, but...

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    Source: [astrobio.net]

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  3. ChemCam to Shine a Light on Mars Habitability


    ChemCam in actionThis artist's concept depicts the rover Curiosity, of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission, as it uses its Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument to investigate the composition of a rock surface. The ChemCam system uses a laser to take samples from as far as 23 feet away from the Curiosity rover. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
    The Mars Science Laboratory is now successfully on its way to Mars. Researchers here on Earth are now preparing for the immense amount of scientific data that the Curiosity rover will be sending when it reaches the martian surface next year. Among the 10 instruments mounted on Curiosity is ChemCam, developed by scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory and the French space institute (IRAP).

    ChemCam is designed to fire a powerful laser pulse that can vaporize an area the size of a pinhead. The instrument is then able to analyze the vaporized material using a spectrometer –...

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    Source: [Los Alamos national Laboratory]

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  4. Mars Mission Lifts Off


    Atlas V leaving KennedyCuriosity is on its way to Mars! The Atlas V has cleared the tower as it lifted off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Credit: NASA/JPL

    NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) and its Curiosity rover have blasted off on an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The mission is now on its way to Mars. The historic launch took place on Saturday, November 26, 2011. The MSL spacecraft successfully separated from the Atlas V Centaur stage at 44 minutes 6 seconds after launch.

    “The launch vehicle has given us a great injection into our trajectory, and we’re on our way to Mars,” said Mars Science Laboratory Project Manager Peter Theisinger of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in...

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    Source: [NASA]

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  5. Eigenbrode Earns Chief Technologist’s Top Prize


    EigenbrodeThe Office of the Chief Technologist selected scientist Jennifer Eigenbrode as its 2009 “IRAD Innovator of the Year” for her work verifying that a new sample-preparation method would benefit the SAM instrument on MSL. Image Credit: Chris Gunn
    NASA Goddard scientist Jennifer Eigenbrode has been selected as the recipient of the 2009 IRAD Innovator of the Year award. Her work has added important capabilities to the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument, which will be included on the upcoming Mars Science Laboratory (MSL). Dr. Eigenbrode’s work will allow MSL to analyze large carbon molecules if they are discovered on Mars, and could play an important role in determining the potential for past or present life on the Red Planet.

    When MSL reaches Mars in 2012, the rover will analyze samples...

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    Source: [Link]

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  6. MSL Delayed


    NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) will no longer launch in October of 2009 due to testing and hardware challenges that must be addressed in order to ensure a successful mission. The mission has been pushed back to 2011, when MSL will carry a science payload ten times larger than NASA’s Spirit and Opportunity rovers to the martian surface. On Mars, MSL will study the martian environment and will help astrobiologists determine if Mars was once habitable for life as we know it.

    Source: [Astrobiology Magazine]

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  7. Baking the Rover is Not an Option


    NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) is now being prepared for its 2009 voyage to Mars, where the rover will sniff about for traces of organic material. The mission is designed to accurately “see and taste” the martian environment like never before, and could determine if the building blocks of life are present at the planet’s surface. The problem is that many of the substances MSL is made from can release molecules that might interfere with experiments. Many steps had to be taken during the mission’s design and preparation in order to to address this issue of contamination.

    Source: [Astrobiology Magazine]

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