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Astronomy Picture of the Day - Perseverance: How to Land on Mars
APOD.NASA.gov ^ | 20 Feb, 2021 | Image Credit: NASA, JPL, Mars 2020

Posted on 02/20/2021 3:31:45 PM PST by MtnClimber

Explanation: Slung beneath its rocket powered descent stage Perseverance hangs only a few meters above the martian surface, captured here moments before its February 18 touchdown on the Red Planet. The breath-taking view followed an intense seven minute trip from the top of the martian atmosphere. Part of a high resolution video, the picture was taken from the descent stage itself during the final skycrane landing maneuver. Three taut mechanical cables about 7 meters long are visible lowering Perseverance, along with an electrical umbilical connection feeding signals (like this image), to a computer on board the car-sized rover. Below Perseverance streamers of martian dust are kicked-up from the surface by the descent rocket engines. Immediately after touchdown, the cables were released allowing the descent stage to fly to a safe distance before exhausting its fuel as planned.


TOPICS: Astronomy; Astronomy Picture of the Day; Science
KEYWORDS: nasa
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To be added or removed from the Astronomy Picture of the Day ping list please send me a request via "Private Reply" (Mail).

For more detail go to the link and click on the image for a high definition image. You can then move the magnifying glass cursor then click to zoom in and click again to zoom out. When zoomed in you can scan by moving the side bars on the bottom and right side of the image.

1 posted on 02/20/2021 3:31:45 PM PST by MtnClimber
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To: MtnClimber

2 posted on 02/20/2021 3:32:07 PM PST by MtnClimber (For photos of Colorado scenery and wildlife, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: 21stCenturion; 21twelve; 4everontheRight; abb; AFB-XYZ; America_Right; Art in Idaho; AZ .44 MAG; ...
Pinging the APOD list.

🪐 🌟 🌌


3 posted on 02/20/2021 3:32:35 PM PST by MtnClimber (For photos of Colorado scenery and wildlife, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: MtnClimber

Humanity is capable of some absolutely amazing things..


4 posted on 02/20/2021 3:40:41 PM PST by mowowie (Press 2 for deportation)
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To: MtnClimber

What’s the APOD list?


5 posted on 02/20/2021 3:47:30 PM PST by Pollard (Bunch of curmudgeons)
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To: MtnClimber

Wow. Well done.


6 posted on 02/20/2021 3:54:22 PM PST by TChad (The MSM, having nuked its own credibility, is now bombing the rubble.)
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To: MtnClimber

So there is such a thing as a sky hook...


7 posted on 02/20/2021 3:54:29 PM PST by Adder ("Can you be more stupid?" is a question, not a challenge.)
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To: MtnClimber

If you have a scroll mouse, scroll to go up/down and hold the Shift key down to go left and right.

Lot of people don’t know about the Shift = left/right scroll trick.

Ctrl + to zoom in more or Ctrl and scroll.

Here’s a video of computer simulation with a bird’s eye view of the descent and landing, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxqgUJg9iKc


8 posted on 02/20/2021 3:56:56 PM PST by Pollard (Bunch of curmudgeons)
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To: Pollard
What’s the APOD list?

It is the list of users that get a notice that the latest NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) has been posted on FR. I currently maintain the list that gets a message after the post is made.

9 posted on 02/20/2021 3:57:36 PM PST by MtnClimber (For photos of Colorado scenery and wildlife, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: MtnClimber

Amazing picture. Amazing landing. The spacecraft begins its descent with an aeroshell / heat shield, then it deploys a parachute, then the lander lowers the rover on cables to touchdown. That’s a lot of systems that have to go just right for it to be a success.


10 posted on 02/20/2021 4:09:59 PM PST by Flick Lives (“Today we celebrate the first glorious anniversary of the Information Purification Directives.”)
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To: MtnClimber

What a pic. Looks like an animation.
That will be a classic pic.


11 posted on 02/20/2021 4:22:24 PM PST by tennmountainman ( Liberals Are Baby Killers.)
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To: MtnClimber

Endeavor to persevere.


12 posted on 02/20/2021 4:27:59 PM PST by Redcitizen
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To: Redcitizen

Josey Wales, excellent.


13 posted on 02/20/2021 4:31:56 PM PST by DaveArk
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To: MtnClimber

To me, launching vehicles outbound from earth is not astronomy.


14 posted on 02/20/2021 4:42:00 PM PST by cymbeline
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To: Pollard

Thanks. Exactly what I wanted to see.


15 posted on 02/20/2021 4:55:59 PM PST by TChad (The MSM, having nuked its own credibility, is now bombing the rubble.)
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To: Pollard

Wow, amazing animation. That really explains the whole entry and landing process.


16 posted on 02/20/2021 5:03:02 PM PST by ProtectOurFreedom (Life is short, and work long, opportunity fleeting, experiments dangerous, and judgment hard)
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To: Pollard

Just last week my computer genius buddy was amazed when he saw me hit ctrl+enter to complete and enter a web address.


17 posted on 02/20/2021 5:05:07 PM PST by mowowie (Press 2 for deportation)
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To: MtnClimber

Awesome picture.

Is that some form of gatling gun? On bottom right of vehicle in picture.

Martian mini-gun?

There’s a Chinese rover supposed to be there soon, right? Maybe ready for trouble.


18 posted on 02/20/2021 5:14:11 PM PST by Lite
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To: cymbeline

I think the folks at NASA/JPL should be notified.


19 posted on 02/20/2021 5:41:06 PM PST by Reynoldo (BurnLootMurder)
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To: DaveArk

Yes. Very excellent.


20 posted on 02/20/2021 5:52:01 PM PST by Redcitizen
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