The Mars Pathfinder Mission included a lander and a rover. It landed on Mars on the Fourth of July, 1997.
The landing was very exciting. First, retro-rockets and a parachute slowed it down a bit, then some giant airbags inflated just before it hit the ground. The airbags completely surrounded the craft as it bounced around on the surface of Mars. Eventually it came to rest, the airbags let out their air, and the petals on the lander opened up to reveal the rover inside. (Actually, the petals were opened and closed several times to flatten out the airbags a bit more.)
The rover was named Sojurner (after the American civil rights crusader Sojourner Truth). It drove around and took 550 pictures during its 83 Martian days of operation. It also measured the chemical properties of 16 locations near the lander. (It couldn't get farther than 500 meters from the lander.) The lander also took photos and measurements.
After landing, the Mars Pathfinder was renamed the Sagan Memorial Station in honor of Carl Sagan.
Contact was lost on September 27, 1997. Engineers tried to re-establish contact, but failed.
Since then, two other rovers visited Mars: Spirit and Opportunity.
For more information:
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Pathfinder
- http://mpfwww.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/past/pathfinder.html
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exploration_of_Mars
Author(s): Troy McLuhan (unknown date prior to 2007 December 31)
