YOU (South Africa)

POWERHOUSE OF INNOVATION

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The InSight spacecraft, including its protective aeroshell and fuel, weighed 700kg at launch but during the descent the shell fell away.

The explorer probe that ultimately touched down on Mars weighs just 360kg and is 108cm tall when its legs are extended. It’s 1,5m wide but when its solar arrays are extended this increases to 6m.

Although it’s fitted with lithium-ion batteries it will eventually be solar powered. On Mars its two solar arrays will provide 600-700 watts on a clear day – enough to power a household food processor. But even on a dusty day it will generate 200-300 watts.

Soon after the craft landed it beamed its first selfie back to Earth. The picture shows a part of the craft as well as the red surface of Mars.

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