Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter celebrates tenth anniversary - 

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The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) has been in service for ten years, collecting data from its position in orbit around the Red Planet. The MRO was launched on July 21, 2005, and is not yet done with its mission of sending information to Mars researchers.

According to Tech Times, the orbiting observatory can study features on the surface of Mars “as small as a computer desk.” The MRO has delivered data on such Martian features as dark patches of land that change color seasonally, perhaps due to flowing brine. The MRO has also located impact glass from old meteor impacts, as well as fresh impact craters which may be sites where subsurface ice is exposed.

“Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has found evidence of diverse watery environments on early Mars, some more habitable than others,” Rich Zurek of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory said in a statement.

“MRO has discovered that Mars’ south polar cap holds enough buried carbon-dioxide ice to double the planet’s current atmosphere if it warmed. It’s caught avalanches and dust storms in action. The spacecraft’s longevity has made it possible to study seasonal and longer-term changes over four Martian years,” Zurek said.

The orbiter also serves as a relay station for information to be passed between Mars landers and rovers and ground control back on Earth.

“Ten years after launch, MRO continues full science and relay operations,” Kevin Gilliland of Lockheed Martin Space Systems said. “We’ve kept our operations efficient. We’ve been able to bring back an astonishing amount of science data — more than 250 terabits so far. Even after more than 40,000 orbits, the mission remains exciting, with new challenges such as taking close-up images of a passing comet last year and supporting next year’s InSight landing.”

The InSight mission will study the interior of Mars, and will be aided by the presence of the MRO, which is being repositioned to best serve InSight.

“Without making this orbit change maneuver, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter would be unable to hear from InSight during the landing, but this will put us in the right place at the right time,” Dan Johnston of Jet Propulsion Laboratory said.

Kathy Fey is a freelance writer with a creative writing degree from Mount Holyoke College. She is an active blogger and erstwhile facilitator of science and engineering programs for children.

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