On August 5, 2012, The Mars Science Laboratory mission successfully landed the largest interplanetary rover ever built, Curiosity, on the surface of Mars. The Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) phase of this mission was by far the most complex landing ever attempted on a planetary body. The Descent Stage Propulsion System played an integral and critical role during Curiosity's EDL. The Descent Stage Propulsion System was a one of a kind hydrazine propulsion system designed specifically for the EDL phase of the MSL mission. It was designed, built, and tested at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of the design and development of the MSL Descent Stage Propulsion System. Driving requirements, system design, component selection, operational sequence of the system at Mars, new developments, and key challenges will be discussed.


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    Title :

    Design and Development of the MSL Descent Stage Propulsion System


    Contributors:

    Conference:

    Space Flight Mechanics Meeting ; 2013 ; Kauai, HI, United States


    Publication date :

    2013-02-10


    Type of media :

    Conference paper


    Type of material :

    No indication


    Language :

    English




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