WASHINGTON: NASA’s Mars Odyssey spacecraft will reach a major milestone tomorrow, when it completes its 60,000th orbit since arriving at the red planet in 2001.
Odyssey, which has discovered widespread water ice just beneath the surface of the red planet, began orbiting Mars almost 14 years ago, on October 23, 2001.
On December 15, 2010, it became the longest-operating spacecraft ever sent to Mars, and continues to hold that record today.
“This orbital milestone is an opportunity to celebrate Odyssey’s many achievements,” said Jim Green, NASA’s director of Planetary Science.
“Odyssey will continue to help lay a foundation for the first humans to Mars in the 2030s through NASA’s Journey to Mars initiative,” Green said.
Odyssey’s major discoveries began in the early months of its two-year primary mission, with gamma-ray and neutron measurements that indicated plentiful water ice just beneath the surface at high latitudes on Mars.
The spacecraft’s unexpectedly long service has enabled achievements such as completion of the highest-resolution global map of Mars and observation of seasonal and year-to-year changes, such as freezing and thawing of carbon dioxide, scientists said.
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