HONG KONG: NASA’s Mars Odyssey spacecraft is set to reach a milestone tomorrow when it completes its 60 000th orbit.
It’s not the only milestone the craft has achieved, as it it became the longest-operating spacecraft ever sent to Mars in 2010.
“Odyssey, which discovered widespread water ice just beneath the surface of the Red Planet, is still going strong today, serving as a key communications relay for NASA’s Mars rovers and making continued contributions to planetary science,” the space agency said.
“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.”
The space agency said that Odyssey’s 60 000 orbits translates into about 1.43 billion kilometres traversed.
“The spacecraft is in good health, with all subsystems functional and with enough propellant for about 10 more years,” said David Lehman, project manager for the Mars Odyssey at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
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