Spaceflight Now | Destination Mars | Technology objectives

The Mission

		Mission: Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Arrival: March 10, 2006 MOI burn start: 4:24 p.m. EST (2124 GMT) Out of Earth view: 4:47 p.m. EST (2147 GMT) MOI burn complete: 4:51 p.m. EST (2151 GMT) Signal restored: 5:16 p.m. EST (2216 GMT) Video coverage Mission Status Center Our earlier MRO stories Orbit insertion timeline MRO instruments Science objectives Technology objectives Missions to Mars What we know about Mars

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Technology objectives
FROM NASA PRESS KIT
Posted: August 9, 2005

The mission objectives for Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter do not end with the spacecraft's scientific discoveries. It also has important work to do in relaying communications from robots on Mars' surface and in demonstrating communication and navigation technologies for use by future missions. Three instruments in the payload serve these purposes:

Electra is a technology package enabling Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to act as a navigational and communications aid for other spacecraft as they approach Mars and operate on the surface of Mars. It will use ultra-high frequency radio for relaying commands from Earth to stationary and mobile robots on the surface and for receiving science and engineering data to be relayed back to Earth via the orbiter's main antenna. As spacecraft with compatible systems approach Mars, signals from the Reconnaissance Orbiter's Electra will provide information about the arriving spacecraft's speed and distance relative to Mars, allowing improved precision in landing. Similarly, Doppler data from Electra communications, coupled with information about the orbiter's position, can accurately indicate the position of a stationary lander or a rover on the surface.

If either or both of the Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity are still operating in the late 2006, they could be the first surface robots to use Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter as a communications relay. The navigation and communications strategies for the Phoenix Mars Scout mission, scheduled for launch in 2007, are being developed to take advantages of the capabilities of Electra. Phoenix is slated to arrive at Mars in May 2008 and land at a site in the arctic plains.

The Optical Navigation Camera is part of a technology demonstration of a navigation technique. The demonstration will compare the predicted positions of Mars' two moons, Phobos and Deimos, with this camera's observations of the moons as the spacecraft approaches Mars. While this technique is not necessary for Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's own navigation, the demonstration will prepare the way for relying on it for navigating precise arrivals for future missions that land on Mars. The camera has an aperture of 6 centimeters (2.3 inches) and a narrow field of view of 1.4 degrees.

The Ka Band Telecommunications Demonstration will allow comparison of the shorter-wavelength Ka radio band with the X band that is the standard for interplanetary spacecraft communication with Earth and the primary band for this mission. The Ka band equipment uses less power than its X-band counterpart to send the same amount of data. However, Ka band transmissions are more susceptible to being disrupted by water in Earth's atmosphere. Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter will use both bands for sending data to Earth, providing a comparison that will aid planning of communication systems for future interplanetary missions.

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