DENVER, July 29, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Lockheed
Martin (NYSE: LMT) developed the technology behind the aeroshell
that will protect NASA's newest Mars rover, Perseverance, and
deploy the first-ever Mars helicopter. The Mars 2020 spacecraft
with its Perseverance rover is scheduled to launch July 30 from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape
Canaveral Air Force Station on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V
rocket.
The Perseverance rover, built by NASA's Jet Propulsion
Laboratory (JPL), will study the geology of Mars while searching
for signs of past microbial life, collects samples of rock, and
will even set the stage for human exploration to the planet. The
2,260-pound rover is enclosed in an aeroshell capsule that protects
the rover during its seven-month deep space flight and atmospheric
descent toward the Martian surface. Lockheed Martin built this
large aeroshell and every previous NASA aeroshell sent to the Red
Planet.
The mission also debuts the first helicopter designed for
another planet, named Ingenuity, to test autonomous flight on Mars.
Lockheed Martin was tasked by JPL to build the Mars helicopter
delivery system (MHDS) that will deploy the helicopter to the
Martian surface for its flight. The delivery system was designed by
Lockheed Martin collaboratively with JPL and attaches the Ingenuity
helicopter to the belly of the rover. The lightweight system was
designed to reliably deploy the 4-pound helicopter to the surface
using four pyrotechnic separation events. It also protects
Ingenuity from debris during landing with a durable, yet light,
composite debris shield.
"This mission is pivotal to the future of Mars exploration,"
said Lisa Callahan, vice president
and general manager of Commercial Civil Space at Lockheed Martin
Space. "Our partnership with NASA to build the aeroshell and
engineer the Mars helicopter delivery system allowed us to draw
upon our deep expertise in aeroshells while also inventing new
systems to enable the first flight in the atmosphere of Mars. This
all moves us closer to the day humankind will walk on the Red
Planet."
The Mars 2020 aeroshell, along with the one built for the Mars
Science Laboratory mission, is the largest built for a robotic
mission. Composed of a heat shield and cone-shaped back shell
measuring 15 feet in diameter, the aeroshell is constructed in a
composite aluminum honeycomb structure sandwiched by graphite-epoxy
face sheets. The heat shield is covered with tiles of a protective
material called phenolic impregnated carbon ablator (PICA) that can
withstand the more than 2,370 degrees Fahrenheit seen during peak
heating.
Perseverance is expected to land on Mars on Feb. 18, 2021.
Photos and videos are available at the below links:
- Photos: https://flic.kr/s/aHsmNWZWaF
- B-Roll of Mars 2020 Aeroshell: https://vimeo.com/440455084
- Video of MHDS: https://vimeo.com/340543138
About Lockheed Martin
Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a
global security and aerospace company that employs approximately
110,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the
research, design, development, manufacture, integration and
sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services.
For additional information, visit our website:
www.lockheedmartin.com.
Please follow @LMNews on Twitter for the latest
announcements and news across the corporation.
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SOURCE Lockheed Martin