What will the mission.
On the penultimate day of July is an exciting launch heavy missiles with valuable science cargo for the Mars 2020 project, which “ate” almost $3 billion, reports the Chronicle.info with reference to League.No.
Today, 30 July at 14:50 Moscow time from pad SLC-41 at Cape Canaveral in Florida will be the launch of the Atlas V with a new Rover Perseverance and Ingenuity helicopter: the surface of the red planet the spacecraft has to come down next February.
MISSION. Flight to the fourth planet from the Sun and work on her is called Mars 2020, the launch of AV-088. All details about Mars mission are available in PDF format, photos are added to a high quality in the Flickr ULA and NASA.
The Rover will explore the impact crater Lake, where, according to NASA, once splashed a huge lake. There he will spend the first astrobiological studies will look for signs of present or past life, and not only that. Miniature helicopter drone (its characteristics) is intended for reconnaissance of the landing area and the first test flight of the technology on another planet.
ROCKET. Atlas V — disposable two-stage rocket. First produced Lockheed Martin, now in Denver, Colorado, Alliance ULA (Lockheed + Boeing). With configurable size of payload fairing and a number of “marginalia” media. Length of 58.3 m, diameter of 3.81 m, a launch weight from 334 to 547 tonnes. Capable to bring in Leo to 18.8 tonnes to GTO is almost 9 so the Cost of launch from $110 to $235 million, It is one of the most reliable missiles: launches that failed were not.
This will be 7th launch of Atlas V in the 541 configuration. The first number is the diameter of the head fairing: “5” — 5.4 m. the Second digit corresponds to the number of boosters — from 0 to 5, and the third the number of engines of the second stage: 1 or 2.
The sustainer stage of the rocket engine RD-180 Russian Energomash-it runs on kerosene and liquid oxygen. America plans to abandon the RD-180 in 2022-m. the Second stage Centaur uses engine thrust RL-10C-1 on liquid hydrogen and oxygen.
A short video on how gathered and Packed the Rover under the fairing, and another video – how a rocket was moved from the “shipyard” on the launcher.
