E-Paper
Mars Orbiter launch delayed
NASA has delayed the launch of the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) for 24 hours, citing an "anomaly."
NASA on Thursday delayed the launch of the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) for 24 hours, citing an "anomaly."
"We have scrubbed for at least 24 hours," a NASA official said on NASA television.
The MRO was slated to blast off Thursday atop an Atlas V rocket for a 25-month mission to survey Mars.
NASA had earlier given the go-ahead for the launch Thursday, a day later than scheduled after problems with the 55-meter-tall (180-foot-tall), 335.6-tonne (740,000-pound) rocket arose on Wednesday.
But it had to postpone the mission again due to an "anomaly," a NASA official said on NASA television.
By using enhanced lenses and flying at a low orbit, the Mars probe is expected to help scientists understand how water has moved on the planet's surface and to pick out possible landing sites for future missions to Mars.
Learning about the history of water distribution is expected to shed light on possible previous Martian life forms.
"Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is the next step in our ambitious exploration of Mars," said Douglas McCuistion, director of NASA's Mars exploration programme.
"We expect to use this spacecraft's eyes in the sky in coming years as our primary tools to identify and evaluate the best places for future missions to land," he added.
The MRO will use a spectrometer that can detect minerals linked to the existence of water, a radiometer that analyses atmospheric dust, water vapour and temperature and Italian radar that can look under the ground to detect water.
One of the three cameras on board the MRO has one of the sharpest lenses sent to survey a planet, which will give scientists on Earth a peek at rocks and surface terrain.
A second camera will prepare high-resolution images and a third will draw up a Mars weather map.
All the information will be sent back using the biggest antenna ever sent to Mars.
NASA said the craft can transmit about 10 times as much data per minute as any previous vehicle, conveying details of the Martian surface, subsurface and climate. The MRO will also relay information from other landers already on the planet.
The MRO will join two American orbiters, the Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey, and one European orbiter, Mars Express, that are already looking for signs of water and ice.
"Dramatic discoveries ... about recent gullies, near-surface permafrost and ancient surface water have given us a new Mars in the past few years," said NASA's Mars exploration chief scientist Michael Meyer.
"Learning more about what has happened to the water will focus searches for possible Martian life, past or present," he added.
A Phoenix module is to head for Mars in 2007, followed by a Mars Science Laboratory in 2009.
