Posted on by Ken Kremer

4 Days to Mars: Curiosity activates Entry, Descent and Landing Timeline – EDL Infographic

It’s 4 Days to Mars – and NASA’s Curiosity Mars Science Lab (MSL) spacecraft is now flying under the control of the crafts autonomous entry, descent and landing timeline and picking up speed as she plunges ever faster to the Red Planet and her Rendezvous with Destiny.

“Timeline activated. Bleep-bop. I’m running entry, descent & landing flight software all on my own. Countdown to Mars: 5 days,” Curiosity tweeted Tuesday night.

See below an EDL explanatory infographic timeline outlining the critical sequence of events which must unfold perfectly for Curiosity to safely survive the “7 Minutes of Terror” set to begin on the evening of August 5/6.

Aug. 1 TV Viewing Alert – 11:30 PM EDT – see NASA Science Chief John Grunsfeld tonight (Wed, Aug. 1) on the Colbert Report


Image Caption: Curiosity EDL infographic – – click to enlarge

And the excitement is building rapidly for NASA’s biggest, boldest mission ever to the Red Planet as the flight team continues to monitor Curiosity’s onboard systems and flight trajectory. Yesterday, the flight team successfully carried out a memory test on the software for the mechanical assembly that controls MSL’s descent motor, configured the spacecraft for its transition to entry, descent and landing approach mode, and they enabled the spacecraft’s hardware pyrotechnic devices.

Curiosity remains healthy and on course. If fine tuning for the targeted landing ellipse is needed, the next chance to fire on board thrusters to adjust the trajectory is Friday, Aug. 3.

The 4th of 6 possible Trajectory Correction Maneuver (TCM) firings was just accomplished on Sunday, July 29 – details here.

The car sized Curiosity rover is scheduled to touchdown on Mars at about 1:31 a.m. EDT (531 GMT) early on Aug. 6 (10:31 p.m. PDT on Aug. 5) inside Gale Crater and next to a 3 mile (5 km) mountain taller that the tallest in the US.

Gale Crater is 154 km (96 mi) in diameter and dominated by a layered mountain rising some 5 km (3 mi) above the crater floor which exhibits exposures of minerals that may have preserved evidence of past or present Martian life.

Curiosity is packed with 10 state-of-the-art science experiments that will search for organic molecules and clay minerals, potential markers for signs of Martian microbial life and habitable zones.

Watch NASA TV online for live coverage of the Curiosity landing on Aug 5/6:
mars.jpl.nasa.gov or www.nasa.gov

Ken Kremer

14 Replies to “4 Days to Mars: Curiosity activates Entry, Descent and Landing Timeline – EDL Infographic”

  1. I did this for me, figured I’d share it with you all, too. I worked out if Spirit and opportunity had landed at my house where they would be now in reference to that landing point. Open up Google Earth, get the “line” function, put one dot on your house, then:

    Spirit is stopped to the southwest of your home, 2.88 miles away at a heading of 124.65

    Opportunity is at Endeavor Crater, loosely 12.06 miles away at a heading of 147.88 (I couldn’t get an exact location from Google Mars)

    For me, Spirit is in a cemetery (kind of fitting, considering), and Opportunity is checking out a Walmart near Allegheny County Municipal airport.

    It was a fun Mars-rover-related activity.

    1. Atleast they arent at your local police station, because then we would know they where up to no good. 😛

      1. since curiosity killed the cat … kevin might get advance knowledge where curiosity will be heading to.

  2. Actually, it’s only taller than any mountain in the continental U.S.

    Denali in Alaska is taller than Aeolus Mons (“Mt. Sharp”).

    1. 5km above the surface of Mars is not the same thing as 5km above the areoid of Mars.

  4. Has anyone noticed the lack of media coverage present? This is NASA’s boldest move to date and there’s been hardly a mention by the media. No wonder the general public is retarded to any space related activities.

    1. No… but then again I usually watch public television or science networks stations…

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