NASA is planning on launching into space its Perseverance rover, responsible for conducting the Mars 2020 mission. The spacecraft’s primary goal is to reach the Red Planet’s surface and provide resourceful information on the topic of microbial life that could exist on the planet.
Even though there is still little time left until its launch on the 17th of July, Perseverance is again continuously upgraded with additional features by the researchers’ team. The researchers are now focusing on developing a flying aircraft that will conduct more trustful research on mars’ surface.
A new study conducted by NASA’s scientists is displaying the abilities of a brand-new fleet of levitating aircraft, whose weight is around a third of a milligram for each part. Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have suggested that NASA’s decision to create the Mars Helicopter is indeed an interesting idea, but it should come with a backup plan as well.
The Benefits Of Nanocardboard Probes For Mars Exploration
Should the helicopter stop working correctly, there is no option of continuing the research, and every effort that was put into the success of this project comes to no result in the end. Therefore the scientists are proposing an entirely different perspective over this matter: the levitating nanocardboard probes.
Each one is a nanocardboard made out of aluminum oxide and a couple of nanometers that are stuck on the ridges to form a pattern of micro-channels. That is what makes the assembly impossible to destroy. In addition to this, their ability to9 levitate is created by the micro-channels, whose temperature gradient influences the circulation of the air, pushing them away from the surface.
This survey aims to conduct extensive research on the Martian atmosphere. Even though scientists already know that it is quite similar to ours as far as density is concerned, scientists have not launched anything capable of flying at that degree, being too high for airplanes and too low for a spacecraft to reach that point.
