Phoenix Mars Lander Successfully Launched
07/01/2007
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AASC has fabricated the shroud for the Phoenix Mars Lander program, which was launched on June 26th, 2007 from its launch pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Base. This is a 422 million-mile (679 million-kilometer), 10 month journey to Mars. The 772-pound (350-kilogram) spacecraft is traveling at approximately 12,300 miles per hour (19,794 kph).
The destination is Mars' north pole, called Vastitas Borealis, arriving on May 25, 2008. The spacecraft will touchdown gently on Mars at a location determined to be safe by the MRO. The spacecraft has an eight-foot (2.4-meter) robotic arm is used to dig up and collect samples of the ice and soil. Researchers are hoping there are organic compounds to study; indicating that at one point there may have been microbial life on the planet. Researchers hope this will be the first of ongoing robotic missions, with potential for future human exploration.
The shroud (fabricated by AASC) houses the weather station on the Lander and consists of composite materials with rib stiffeners, a titanium laser tube and adaptor ring along with a reflective kapton cover. The complete meteorological station will provide continuous and comprehensive weather reports from Mars. T emperature, air pressure, cloud height, humidity and wind speeds of Mars will be tracked, and images of the sky will be taken to analyze the clouds. The analysis of these reports will lead to a better understanding of martian climate, weather systems, and water vapor origination.
Applied Aerospace Structures Corporation (AASC) is a full service provider of complex composite and metal bonded structures and assemblies for both military and commercial applications. Based in Stockton, California, AASC is classified as a small business with approximately 300 employees, designs and fabricates critical, lightweight, high-performance, engineered structural assemblies for the aerospace industry. The company is ISO 9001:2000 and AS9100, third party certified and has been in business since 1956. For more information, visit the company’s web site at www.aascworld.com.