Tag Archives: InSight

InSight: NASA targets May 2018 launch

Posted on March 9, 2016 by rburnham

NASA’s Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) mission to study the deep interior of Mars is targeting a new launch window that begins May 5, 2018, with a Mars landing scheduled for Nov. 26, 2018. InSight’s … Continue reading →

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InSight: 2016 launch cancelled due to problems with the seismometer

Posted on December 22, 2015 by rburnham

Update: NASA press release is here. NASA announced today that a vacuum leak in the French-built seismometer is forcing a cancellation of InSight’s scheduled March 2016 launch. In a statement, NASA said, “After thorough examination, NASA managers have decided to … Continue reading →

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InSight ships to Vandenberg AFB for launch

Posted on December 17, 2015 by rburnham

NASA’s next Mars spacecraft has arrived at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, for final preparations before a launch scheduled in March 2016 and a landing on Mars six months later. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, built and tested the spacecraft … Continue reading →

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InSight: Vacuum leak found in French seismometer

Posted on December 3, 2015 by rburnham

A key science instrument that will be carried aboard NASA’s Interior Exploration Using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) spacecraft being prepared for launch in March 2016 is experiencing a leak in the vacuum container carrying its main sensors. … Continue reading →

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Detecting Mars dust devils by seismometer

Posted on November 11, 2015 by rburnham

Buried in the shallow soft mud of a dry California lake bed, a seismometer was able to detect the tiny tilts of the ground as it was pulled up by passing dust devils. The experiment, described online November 10 in … Continue reading →

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InSight: Send your name to Mars

Posted on August 19, 2015 by rburnham

Mars enthusiasts around the world can participate in NASA’s journey to Mars by adding their names to a silicon microchip headed to the Red Planet aboard NASA’s InSight Mars lander, scheduled to launch next year. “Our next step in the … Continue reading →

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MRO to shift orbit to cover InSight’s landing

Posted on July 28, 2015 by rburnham

With its biggest orbit maneuver since 2006, NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) will prepare this week for the arrival of NASA’s next Mars lander, InSight, next year. A planned 77-second firing of six intermediate-size thrusters on July 29 will adjust … Continue reading →

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CubeSats will accompany InSight to Mars

Posted on June 15, 2015 by rburnham

When NASA launches its next mission on the journey to Mars — a stationary lander in 2016 — the flight will include two CubeSats. This will be the first time CubeSats have flown in deep space. If this flyby demonstration … Continue reading →

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Tests begin for InSight, NASA’s next Mars lander

Posted on May 28, 2015 by rburnham

Testing is underway on NASA’s next mission on the journey to Mars, a stationary lander scheduled to launch in March 2016. The lander is called InSight, an abbreviation for Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport. It is … Continue reading →

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InSight will land on Elysium Planitia lava flows

Posted on March 4, 2015 by rburnham

This map [made using THEMIS daytime infrared images] shows the single area under continuing evaluation as the InSight mission’s Mars landing site, as of a year before the mission’s May 2016 launch. The finalist ellipse marked within the northern portion … Continue reading →

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