NASA’s Mars team is testing a new method of getting equipment onto the martian surface -- using a deliberate crash landing.
To get machines onto Mars, NASA has been deploying various landing methods that over the years have included air bags, parachutes, and jetpacks.
Now, the Mars team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California is testing a fourth method of getting apparatus onto the martian surface — using a deliberate crash landing. NASA Tests Ways to Crash Land on Mars As you can see in the footage, SHIELD uses a collapsible, accordion-like base to absorb the energy of a hard landing.
That accordion-like base clearly takes a heavy hit, crumpling as it smashes onto the plate at 110 mph . But to the team’s delight, the components inside SHIELD, which included a smartphone, remained intact.
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