Mars-bound rover begins research in space
The rover carries an instrument called the Radiation Assessment Detector that monitors high-energy atomic and subatomic particles.
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NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C. —
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December 20, 2011 This is an artist's concept of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft during its cruise phase between launch and final approach to Mars. NASA/JPL-Caltech
Curiosity launched November 26 from Cape Canaveral, Florida, aboard the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL). The rover carries an instrument called the Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) that monitors high-energy atomic and subatomic particles from the Sun, distant supernovae, and other sources.
These particles constitute radiation that could be harmful to any microbes or astronauts in space or on Mars. The rover also will monitor radiation on the surface of Mars after its August 2012 landing.
“RAD is serving as a proxy for an astronaut inside a spacecraft on the way to Mars,” said Don Hassler from the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado. “The instrument is deep inside the spacecraft, the way an astronaut would be. Understanding the effects of the spacecraft on the radiation field will be valuable in designing craft for astronauts to travel to Mars.”
Previous monitoring of energetic-particle radiation in space has used instruments at or near the surface of various spacecraft. The RAD instrument is on the rover inside the spacecraft and shielded by other components of MSL, including the aeroshell that will protect the rover during descent through the upper atmosphere of Mars.
Spacecraft structures, while providing shielding, also can contribute to secondary particles generated when high-energy particles strike the spacecraft. In some circumstances, secondary particles could be more hazardous than primary ones.
These first measurements mark the start of the science return from a mission that will use 10 instruments on Curiosity to assess whether Mars’ Gale Crater could be or has been favorable for microbial life.
“While Curiosity will not look for signs of life on Mars, what it might find could be a game-changer about the origin and evolution of life on Earth and elsewhere in the universe,” said Doug McCuistion from NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. “One thing is certain: The rover’s discoveries will provide critical data that will impact human and robotic planning and research for decades.”
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