The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter provided primary relay support during the Mars 2020 mission’s entry, descent, and landing sequence on February 18, 2021. To position the orbiter for relay support during this sequence, two propulsive maneuvers were performed: the first on September 2, 2020 and the second on January 20, 2021. This paper documents the maneuver strategy developed by the navigation team for positioning the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to within phasing requirements to support the Mars 2020 mission during landing and provides details on how well those phasing requirements were met.
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Navigation Strategy for Support of Mars 2020 Mission's Entry, Descent and Landing Sequence
2021-08-09
Preprint
No indication
English