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Mariner 8; 1971 // USA
Topic Started: Friday 31-07-2009, 00:26 (431 Views)
[Publisher] Magrathean
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Mars > Missions > Mariner 8 > Index
 
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  1. Index
  2. [go2=missionoverview]Mission overview[/go2]
  3. [go2=spacecraftandinstruments]Spacecraft and instruments[/go2]
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Mars > Missions > Mariner 8 > Mission overview
 
Objectives
  1. orbit Mars
  2. gather data on atmospheric pressure, density, temperature and composition
  3. gather data on surface composition and temperature
  4. photograph the martian surface and gather topographic data




Summary

Launch date: 09 may 1971

Mission status: failed

Mariners 8 and 9 were identical probes designed to orbit Mars for at least 90 days. They were designed to each perform one of two missions, the first being the acquisition of atmospheric data and the second being the acquisition of surface data; either spacecraft could perform either mission, but Mariner 8's failure resulted in an attempt to have Mariner 9 accomplish both missions.

The main engine of the rocket which would have taken Mariner 8 to space ignited properly, but it was soon clear that the upper stage was out of control. It tumbled, and this movement caused the engine to shut down. The spacecraft and rocket then separated and reentered Earth's atmosphere, landing in the Atlantic Ocean.
Source: Wikipedia / Mariner 8
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Mars > Missions > Mariner 8 > Spacecraft and instruments
 
Like its predecessors, Mariner 8 was built upon an octagonal magnesium frame base. The base was 138.4 centimeters diagonally and 45.7 centimeters tall. Four solar panels extended from the top of the base; each was 215 by 90 centimeters. Two propulsion tanks, a 1.44-meter-long low-gain antenna mast, a high-gain parabolic antenna and an engine used for maneuvering the spacecraft were also mounted on top of the frame. Under the frame lied a scan platform which carried the scientific instruments. Inside the frame were the electronics for command and control and those for communications.

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Propulsion was provided by a gimballed engine; the propellants used were monomethylhydrazine and dinitrogen tetroxide.

Spacecraft attitude was controlled by two sets of six nitrogen jets at the ends of the solar panels, a Canopus tracker, a Sun sensor, an inertial reference unit, gyroscopes and an accelerometer.

Power was provided by the 14,742 cells in the solar panels. The panels could provide 800 watts at Earth and 500 watts at Mars. Power was stored in a 20-ampere-hour nickel-cadmium battery.

Temperature was controlled by louvers on the sides of the frame and by thermal blankets.

The scientific equipment attached to the scan platform consisted of wide-angle and narrow-angle cameras, an infrared radiometer, an infrared spectrometer and an ultraviolet spectrometer.

Telecommunications were achieved by the antennas via dual S-band 10-watt / 20-watt transmitters and a receiver.

Data was stored in a digital tape recorder; the 168-meter-long tape could store up to 180,000,000 bits recorded at 132 kilobits per second and could play the data back at 1, 2, 4, 8 or 16 kilobits per second.

The craft was controlled by a central computer and a sequencer.

Mariner 8's total height was 2.28 meters. With its solar panels deployed, it spanned 6.89 meters. The craft's weight was 558.8 kilograms.
Source: Wikipedia / Mariner 8
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