Thermal footage of Space X Falcon 9 rocket could help Nasa land astronauts on Mars
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Probes sent to Mars usually use a soft landing system that causes them to bounce several times before coming to a standstill.
But Nasa needs to be more accurate when it comes to putting humans on the red planet, and it is hoping Space X's Falcon 9 rocket could help.
The space agency recently teamed up with Elon Musk's firm to record thermal footage of the Falcon 9 rocket as its first stage pulled away and burned through the atmosphere.
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Nasa recently teamed up with Elon Musk's firm to record thermal footage (left) of the Falcon 9 rocket (pictured left at launch) as its first stage pulled away and burned through the atmosphere
The first stage is the part of the rocket that is ignited at launch and burns through the rocket's ascent until it runs out of propellant.
At this point it is discarded from the second stage and returns to Earth.
According to Nasa, its descent back to Earth presents Mars-like conditions, which means data collected could help plan a future mission to the red planet.
With an failure rate of 66 per cent, the entry, descent and landing phase of the Mars mission is the key part of any mission to the red planet.
Mars' surface pressure is less than one per cent of Earth's, which is not enough to slow down an aircraft from its entry speed of more than 12,000mph (19,000 km/h).
To record the descent of Falcon 9, the agency equipped two planes with infrared cameras and had them film the controlled flight which took place in Cape Canaveral in September.
On launch day, the planes reached their observation locations about 50 miles (80km) from the projected rocket trajectory.
Video footage from the planes revealed the thermal energy given off by the rocket as it fell to Earth at supersonic speeds.
'Because the technologies required to land large payloads on Mars are significantly different than those used here on Earth, investment in these technologies is critical,' said Robert Braun, principal investigator for Nasa Propulsive Descent Technologies (PDT).
Mars' surface pressure is less than one per cent of Earth's, which is not enough to slow down an aircraft from its entry speed of more than 12,000mph (19,000 km/h)
'This is the first high-fidelity data set of a rocket system firing into its direction of travel while traveling at supersonic speeds in Mars-relevant conditions.
Nasa chiefs have said that sending a manned mission to Mars is 'necessary if the human race is to survive'.
The space agency is currently developing the capabilities needed to capture an asteroid by 2015 and send humans to by 2030.
As well as making the daring 34-million-mile journey through space, once at Mars astronauts will have to contend with the cold, barren landscape of Mars.
The planet has violent winds with dust storms that engulf the planet for months at a time. It never rains and temperatures drop to -90°C at night.
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