When NASA’s Mars Curiosity rover lands on Mars August 5, scientists say they’ll be in for “seven minutes of terror.”
Surveying the landing process from a control station on Earth, NASA’s crew won’t know what’s happening with the rover due to a delayed signal. It takes 14 minutes for the rover’s signal to reach from Mars to Earth, meaning NASA will be observing the process on a delayed timeline.
“When we first get word that we’ve touched the top of the atmosphere, the vehicle has been alive or dead on the surface for at least seven minutes,” said engineer Adam Stelzner in a NASA video.
And it’s not like the landing process is simple. The rover will go through a complicated and strange series of events on its way to the surface of Mars. This oddly-gripping video outlines them all. (It’s five minutes long, but it’s a good five minutes. Take a look.)
Hat tip to Gizmodo.
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