14 DAY TRIAL // Just yesterday, NASA showcased its Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator, a space vehicle that the agency hopes will one day help safely deliver astronauts and cargo to the surface of the Red Planet.
As part of the demonstration held this past Tuesday, NASA's cool-looking flying saucer, measuring 15 feet (roughly 4.5 meters) across and weighing some 7,000 pounds (3,175 kilograms), was made to spin atop a table.
The test was carried out at the agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the city of Pasadena in California and served to test the Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator's balance, NASA scientists explain.
It is understood that the space vehicle was made to spin at a rate of 30 rotations per minute. The demonstration was filmed and footage showing the Decelerator going round and round is included in the video below.
In June, NASA will send the vehicle into near-space and then let fall back to Earth. This test will be carried out in Hawaii and will show whether the Decelerator can handle Martian-like conditions.
The Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator is a vehicle shaped like a disc that packs an inflatable balloon similar to a doughnut around it. It is designed to create drag and thus slow a spacecraft heading towards a planet's surface.
