NASA InSight Mission Aims for Mars Landing on Nov. 26

NASA's InSight spacecraft, designed to study the deep interior of Mars, is on track for a soft landing on the Red Planet on November 26, just days after Thanksgiving. The mission team will not be celebrating the holiday but will instead be closely monitoring the spacecraft's status and trajectory as it approaches the Martian surface.

"Landing on Mars is hard. It takes skill, focus and years of preparation," said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA. The mission marks a significant step toward future human exploration of the Moon and Mars, with the InSight team determined to ensure a successful landing.

InSight launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in May 2018 and has had a smooth journey to Mars. The spacecraft will enter the Martian atmosphere at over 12,000 mph and must slow down to about 5 mph in under seven minutes—a process engineers call the "seven minutes of terror." During this time, the spacecraft will rely on pre-programmed commands to guide it to a safe landing in the Elysium Planitia region.

A key part of the mission involves the Mars Cube One (MarCO) CubeSats, which may relay data back to Earth in near-real time during the landing. If successful, this could provide engineers with critical information within minutes, rather than hours, allowing them to assess the spacecraft's status quickly. Without MarCO, data would have to wait for transmission via NASA's orbiters.

Once InSight has landed safely and its solar arrays are deployed, the mission will shift to deploying scientific instruments. These will provide insights into the structure of Mars' interior, helping scientists understand the formation of rocky planets, including Earth. The mission is a collaboration between NASA and international partners, with significant contributions from institutions in France and Germany.