New glimpses from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and ongoing data analysis are revealing the fate of the Schiaparelli lander.
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s newest image of Schiaparelli’s landing site.
NASA / JPL-Caltech / University of Arizona
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A week after Schiaparelli’s fatal plunge, a picture is emerging (literally) to explain what happened to the ExoMars lander.
There is no shortage of derelict spacecraft dotting the surface of Mars, some of whose ends have remained mysterious for decades. But unlike the loss of Beagle 2 in 2003 or NASA’s Mars Polar Lander in 1999, the European Space Agency’s Schiaparelli Entry, Descent and landing Module (EDM) demonstrator was designed to transmit data though all stages of descent. The Giant Metre-wave Radio Telescope tracking station in Pune, India and ESA’s very own Mars Express were listening to the lander’s “six minutes of terror,” during entry and descent.
What Happened to Schiaparelli?
Based on that data, here’s what appears to have happened. Atmospheric braking against the tenuous Martian atmosphere and parachute deployment were flawless and on time. Then, about 90 seconds prior to landing, things went awry.
First, the module jettisoned its heat shield and parachute early. Then to make matters worse, a computer glitch seems to have confused the lander, as miscommunication between its onboard navigational system and radar erroneously told Schiaparelli it was near the surface. So the braking rockets shut off after burning for only 3 seconds rather than the planned 60 seconds. At about 2 to 4 kilometers (1 to 2.5 miles) above the surface, Schiaparelli went into free fall.
Ultimately, Schiaparelli slammed into the Meridiani Planum region of Mars at an estimated 300 kilometers per hour (186 mph). The lander most likely exploded on impact. This past Friday (October 21st), NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter captured a view of an ugly new crater of Mars, as well as a white spot that appears to be the parachute, which seems to bear this story out.