Mars 3 facts for kids
| Mission type | Mars orbiter/lander |
|---|---|
| Operator | Soviet space program |
| Mission duration | Orbiter: 1 year, 2 months and 25 days Lander: 1 minute and 50 seconds |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft type | 4M No.172 |
| Manufacturer | OKB-1 |
| Launch mass | Total: 4,650 kg (10,250 lb) Orbiter: 3,440 kg (7,580 lb) Lander: 1,210 kg (2,670 lb) |
| Landing mass | 358 kg (789 lb) |
| Dry mass | 2,265 kg (4,993 lb) |
| Dimensions | 4.1 × 2.0 × 5.9 m (13.5 × 6.6 × 19.4 ft) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 28 May 1971, 15:26:30 UTC |
| Rocket | Proton-K/D |
| Launch site | Baikonur 81/23 |
| Contractor | Khrunichev |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | Decommissioned |
| Declared | August 22, 1972 |
| Last contact | Orbiter: July 1972 Lander: 2 December 1971, 13:53:50 UTC |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Areocentric |
| Periareion | 1,528 km (949 mi) |
| Apoareion | 214,500 km (133,300 mi) |
| Inclination | 60° |
| Period | 12.67 days |
| Mars orbiter | |
| Orbital insertion | December 2, 1971 |
| Mars lander | |
| Landing date | December 2, 1971 13:52 UTC |
| Landing site | 45°02′40″S 202°01′09″E / 45.0445°S 202.0193°E |
 Mars 3 (lander) stamp Mars program
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Mars 3 was a robotic space probe sent by the Soviet Union to explore the planet Mars. It launched on May 28, 1971, just nine days after its twin spacecraft, Mars 2. Both missions were part of the Mars program.
The spacecraft had two main parts: an orbiter that stayed in space around Mars, and a lander designed to go down to the surface. The Mars 3 lander became famous because it was the first spacecraft in history to make a soft landing on Mars on December 2, 1971. This means it landed gently without crashing.
Unfortunately, the lander stopped working only 110 seconds (less than two minutes) after it landed. It sent back one gray image that did not show any clear details. However, the orbiter part of the mission continued to circle Mars. It sent pictures and scientific information back to Earth for eight more months.
Contents
Mission Overview
Here are some key facts about the Mars 3 mission:
- Launch date: May 28, 1971
- Arrival at Mars: December 2, 1971
- Total weight: 4,650 kg (10,250 lb) (about the weight of a large truck)
- Orbiter weight: 3,440 kg (7,580 lb)
- Lander weight: 1,210 kg (2,670 lb)
- Size: It was 4.1 m (13.5 ft) tall and 5.9 m (19.4 ft) wide when its solar panels were open.
The Orbiter Spacecraft
The main job of the orbiter was to study Mars from above. It carried instruments to:
- Take pictures of the surface.
- Study what the ground and atmosphere were made of.
- Measure the temperature and magnetic fields.
- Act as a radio relay to send signals from the lander back to Earth.
When Mars 3 arrived, it had a problem with its fuel and could not enter the exact orbit scientists had planned. Instead, it went into a long, oval-shaped orbit that took about 12 days to circle the planet.
The Great Dust Storm
When Mars 3 and its twin, Mars 2, arrived at the Red Planet, they faced a big surprise. A massive dust storm was covering the entire planet. It was the largest storm astronomers had ever seen on Mars. The dust was so thick that the surface was completely hidden.
Because the computers on the spacecraft could not be changed from Earth quickly enough, the orbiters took many pictures of just dust clouds. This used up a lot of their film and memory. However, the mission still provided useful data. Between December 1971 and August 1972, the orbiter sent back 60 pictures. It discovered mountains as high as 22 km and measured surface temperatures ranging from −110 °C to +13 °C.
The Mars Lander
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The lander was the part of the spacecraft designed to go down to the surface. It was a round capsule protected by a cone-shaped shield.
Design and Instruments
The descent module weighed 1210 kg. It had a spherical landing capsule inside a braking shield. To land safely, it used:
- A braking shield to slow down in the atmosphere.
- Parachutes to float down gently.
- Retro-rockets (small engines) to slow it down right before touching the ground.
- Foam to absorb the shock of landing.
Once on the ground, four triangular "petals" would open up to steady the spacecraft and uncover the instruments. The lander had cameras to look around in a full circle (360 degrees). It also had sensors to check the wind, pressure, and temperature, and a mechanical scoop to test the soil.
The PrOP-M Rover
The Mars 3 lander carried a very small Mars rover called PrOP-M. It weighed only 4.5 kg. Unlike modern rovers with wheels, this robot moved on two skis. It was connected to the lander by a 15-meter cable.
The plan was for a robotic arm to place the rover on the ground. The rover would then "walk" on its skis to test the soil. Because radio signals take a long time to travel between Earth and Mars, the rover had metal rods to feel for obstacles and move around them automatically. Sadly, because the lander stopped working so quickly, we do not know if the rover was ever deployed.
Landing on the Red Planet
On December 2, 1971, the lander separated from the orbiter. It entered the Martian atmosphere at a very high speed of 5.7 km/s. The heat shield, parachutes, and rockets worked perfectly. At 13:52 UTC, Mars 3 touched down softly at 45°S 202°E / 45°S 202°E.
About 90 seconds after landing, the spacecraft began sending signals to the orbiter. But after just 20 seconds of transmission, the signal suddenly stopped. The only thing received was a partial image that looked like a gray background with no details.
Scientists believe the failure was caused by the giant dust storm. The storm likely created a lot of static electricity (like a lightning storm), which might have damaged the radio system on the lander.
Discovery of the Wreckage
For over 40 years, no one saw the Mars 3 lander again. Then, on April 11, 2013, NASA announced a possible discovery. Amateur space fans found what looked like the Mars 3 hardware in photos taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO).
The images from the MRO's powerful HiRISE camera showed objects that looked like the parachute, the heat shield, the retrorockets, and the lander itself. The objects were found right where Mars 3 was supposed to land, in the Ptolemaeus Crater.
See also
- List of Mars orbiters
- List of missions to Mars
- Mars 1M
- Robotic space mission
- Space exploration
- Timeline of artificial satellites and space probes
