Twin NASA Probes ESCAPADE Will Use Powered Slingshots to Reach Mars

First reported 06 Nov, 16:35 UTCSource: Universe TodayLast editorial activity 06 Nov, 16:35 UTCWrite a comment ↓

Reference image.Photo: Jim Secosky asked NASA to… / Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
Full credit
File:Features in Arabia quadrangle.jpg / Jim Secosky asked NASA to image this region with HiRISE under the HiWish program. After picture was taken he used HiView to modify the image. The image credit should be: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona/Secosky / https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_028353_1815 / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain / https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Features_in_Arabia_quadrangle.jpgSource page

NASA's ESCAPADE mission, made up of twin spacecraft named Red and Blue, is heading to Mars after launching outside the usual launch window. To reach the planet on time, the pair will fire their thrusters during powered slingshot maneuvers that combine with Earth's gravity.

Why the spacecraft need extra speed

ESCAPADE did not launch during the usual Mars launch window, which opens about every 26 months. The spacecraft therefore had to loiter near the Earth-Sun Lagrange point 2 for a while before approaching Earth and carrying out their burns.

Each trans-Mars injection burn is expected to last about 9 minutes and to increase speed from about 10.14 km/s to 10.78 km/s. The report gives the first burn for November 7th and the second for November 9th.

A twin pair built to fly in formation

The two identical spacecraft will fly in formation around Mars, which the report describes as a first for spacecraft at the planet. At their closest, they will be between about 965 and 1,770 kilometers above the surface.

Their task is to measure how the solar wind interacts with the remnants of Mars' ancient magnetic field, adding detail to the broad picture of how the planet lost its atmosphere.

Earth's magnetotail observed on the way

The detour also produced additional science. The spacecraft flew through and observed Earth's magnetotail, and according to the report they were the first spacecraft to do so. Those observations will be shared soon.

What scientists think happened to Mars' atmosphere

Evidence suggests Mars was once warm and wet and may have been habitable, possibly even hosting simple life, but the planet is now cold and dead. Scientists studying the planet propose that ultraviolet radiation from the Sun drove its ancient atmosphere into space. That process became possible after the molten core cooled and the planet lost its protective magnetic field.

Mars still has patches of magnetism, known as crustal or remnant magnetic fields, generated by iron-rich chunks of its crust rather than by a dynamo. These fields are far weaker than the ancient global field but are enough for study. A colour-coded map of them was created with data from NASA's Mars Global Surveyor, which is now defunct.

Open questions

Will the spacecraft's measurements settle the details of how Mars lost its atmosphere?
When exactly will the Earth magnetotail observations be released?

Key facts

The ESCAPADE mission launched outside the normal Mars launch window.

The two identical spacecraft, Red and Blue, will use powered slingshot maneuvers to boost their speed.

Once at Mars, the pair will fly in formation to study how the solar wind interacts with remnants of the planet's ancient magnetosphere.

The burns are expected to last about nine minutes each and raise speed from about 10.14 km/s to 10.78 km/s.

On the outbound journey the spacecraft observed Earth's magnetotail, which the report describes as a first for spacecraft.