SpaceCast
Pathfinder Special Reports ....................................... July 4 , 1997
Last Course Correction Not Needed
WASHINGTON, DC. July 4, 1997 Saying the overnight hours were "wonderfully dull", NASA space officials report this morning that the last series of trajectory changes for the Mars Pathfinder probe were cancelled as unnecessary. Two such opportunities existed during the night last night, but Mars Pathfinder Systems Engineering Chief Rob Manning said they were not conducted.This means the last commands to the probe from Earth will be: idling the craft's Attitude Control System now set for 10:30 am EDT today, followed by activation and discharge of the spacecraft battery. This battery will be used for the first time in about two hours when the Cruise Stage, attached to Pathfinder's nose, will be jettisoned. Space officials want to make sure that the battery is working before that event. The next command to Pathfinder will be to erase all of the "extra information", as Manning put it, that the probe has stored during its seven month space cruise towards Mars. This data will no longer be needed as the craft enters Mars atmosphere. Then, lastly, liquid coolant freon that has been used to cool the spacecraft will be discharged out into deep space.
NASA also reported that the Madrid station of the Deep Space Tracking Network will be the Earth station in contact with pathfinder as it enters the Martian atmosphere. Madrid reported this morning it was ready for the event.
At this moment the craft is 128,000 miles from the atmosphere of Mars.
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