Skip Navigation
menu

Images

Marsforming for InSight

Engineers in Pasadena, California, sculpt a gravel-like material to mimic the terrain in front of NASA's InSight lander on Mars. Recreating the exact conditions will allow them to practice setting down the lander's instruments here on Earth before it's done on Mars.

December 18, 2018

Engineers in Pasadena, California, sculpt a gravel-like material to mimic the terrain in front of NASA's InSight lander on Mars. Recreating the exact conditions will allow them to practice setting down the lander's instruments here on Earth (at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory) before it's done on Mars.

Credits

NASA/JPL-Caltech/IPGP

ENLARGE

Related

This is one of the last images ever taken by NASA’s InSight Mars lander. Captured on Dec. 11, 2022, the 1,436th Martian day, or sol, of the mission, it shows InSight’s seismometer on the Red Planet...
More
This is one of the last images ever taken by NASA’s InSight Mars lander. Captured on Dec. 11, 2022, the 1,436th Martian day, or sol, of the mission, it shows InSight’s seismometer on the Red Planet’s surface.
One of InSight's Last Images
Artist rendition of the formation of rocky bodies in the solar system - how they form and differentiate and evolve into terrestrial planets.
More
Artist rendition of the formation of rocky bodies in the solar system - how they form and differentiate and evolve into terrestrial planets.
The Rocky Body images - Part Four
This test using an engineering model of the InSight lander here on Earth shows how the spacecraft on Mars will use its robotic arm to press on a digging device, called the "mole."
More
This test using an engineering model of the InSight lander here on Earth shows how the spacecraft on Mars will use its robotic arm to press on a digging device, called the "mole."
Robotic Arm Pushes on a Model of the 'Mole'
One of the twin MarCO CubeSats snapped this image of Mars on Oct. 3 – the first image of the Red Planet ever produced by this class of tiny, low-cost spacecraft.
More
One of the twin MarCO CubeSats snapped this image of Mars on Oct. 3 – the first image of the Red Planet ever produced by this class of tiny, low-cost spacecraft.
NASA's First Image of Mars from a CubeSat
In this photo, spacecraft specialists at Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, are reaching up to guide lowering of the parachute cone for installation onto NASA's InSight spacecraft.
More
In this photo, spacecraft specialists at Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, are reaching up to guide lowering of the parachute cone for installation onto NASA's InSight spacecraft.
Installing the InSight Spacecraft's Parachute Cone
Engineers for NASA's MarCO (Mars Cube One) technology demonstration inspect one of the two MarCO CubeSats. 
More
Engineers for NASA's MarCO (Mars Cube One) technology demonstration inspect one of the two MarCO CubeSats. Joel Steinkraus, MarCO lead mechanical engineer, left, and Andy Klesh, MarCO chief engineer, are on the team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, preparing twin MarCO CubeSats.
MarCO CubeSat Engineers 3
An illustration of the route InSight takes to get to Mars.
More
An illustration of the route InSight takes to get to Mars.
InSight's Route to Mars
The rocket that launched NASA’s InSight lander to Mars in 2018 is seen at Vandenberg Air Force Base, now called Vandenberg Space Force Base.
More
The rocket that launched NASA’s InSight lander to Mars in 2018 is seen at Vandenberg Air Force Base, now called Vandenberg Space Force Base.
InSight's Rocket Prepares to Launch
To clean a bit of dust from one of its solar panels, NASA’s InSight lander trickled sand above the panel. The wind-borne sand grains then picked up some dust on the panel, enabling the lander to ga...
More
To clean a bit of dust from one of its solar panels, NASA’s InSight lander trickled sand above the panel.
InSight's Robotic Arm Helps Remove Solar Panel Dust Trickles Sand in the Wind
An artist's rendering of the twin Mars Cube One (MarCO) spacecraft on their cruise in deep space. 
More
An artist's rendering of the twin Mars Cube One (MarCO) spacecraft on their cruise in deep space.
Distant Perspective of MarCOs Cruise in Deep Space
An image of InSight's robotic arm, with its scoop and stowed grapple, poised above the Martian soil. The image was received on Dec. 4, 2018 (Sol 8).
More
An image of InSight's robotic arm, with its scoop and stowed grapple, poised above the Martian soil. The image was received on Dec. 4, 2018 (Sol 8).
Insight's Robotic Arm Over Martian Soil
NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter captured this image of a meteoroid impact that was first detected by the agency’s InSight lander using its seismometer. This crater was formed on Feb. 18, 2021.
More
detected by the agency’s InSight lander using its seismometer. This crater was formed on Feb. 18, 2021.
InSight-Detected Impact in February 2021
Engineers for NASA's MarCO technology demonstration display a full-scale mechanical mock-up of the small craft in development as part of NASA's next mission to Mars.
More
Two engineers hold a full-scale mechanical mock-up of a small satellite.
Model of Mars-Bound MarCO CubeSat
French engineers developed and built a quake-detecting device - a seismometer - to send to Mars as part of the NASA InSight mission. The seismometer’s principal investigator, Philippe Lognonné of F...
More
Inside InSight - French Scientist Aims to Detect Quakes on Mars
Inside InSight: French Scientist Aims to Detect Quakes on Mars
Once NASA's InSight Mars lander enters the Martian atmosphere and approaches the planet's surface, propulsive landing gear will slow the spacecraft down to about 5.5 mph (8.8 km/h) and safely set i...
More
Once NASA's InSight Mars lander enters the Martian atmosphere and approaches the planet's surface, propulsive landing gear will slow the spacecraft down to about 5.5 mph (8.8 km/h) and safely set it down on the surface of the Red Planet.
InSight Landing Systems
Artist rendition of the formation of rocky bodies in the solar system - how they form and differentiate and evolve into terrestrial planets.
More
Artist rendition of the formation of rocky bodies in the solar system - how they form and differentiate and evolve into terrestrial planets.
The Rocky Body images - Part One
Space missions often defy the odds, overcoming all obstacles. The people who work on these missions also face challenges to get where they are today. Marleen Martinez Sundgaard, the testbed lead fo...
More
Space missions often defy the odds, overcoming all obstacles. The people who work on these missions also face challenges to get where they are today. Marleen Martinez Sundgaard, the testbed lead for InSight, personifies this tenacious spirit.
True Grit on the Road to Mars
NASA's InSight will be the first interplanetary launch from America’s West Coast.
More
NASA's InSight will be the first interplanetary launch from America’s West Coast. Residents in some of California’s coastal communities could get a front row seat. Here’s when and where to see it.
Watching the First Interplanetary Launch from America's West Coast
One of the MarCO CubeSats inside a cleanroom at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, before being placed into its deployment box.
More
One of the MarCO CubeSats inside a cleanroom at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, before being placed into its deployment box.
MarCO and Dispenser
This kickoff of a new Mars video series covers Opportunity's 14th anniversary on the Red Planet, Curiosity's spectacular panorama and ice deposits spotted by an orbiter.
More
This kickoff of a new Mars video series covers Opportunity's 14th anniversary on the Red Planet, Curiosity's spectacular panorama and ice deposits spotted by an orbiter.
Mars Report: January 2018
The InSight mission is heading to Mars, but many spacecraft have died trying to get there. The current record for Mars missions is 18 successes, and 25 failures. InSight hopes to improve the odds.
More
The InSight mission is heading to Mars, but many spacecraft have died trying to get there. The current record for Mars missions is 18 successes, and 25 failures. InSight hopes to improve the odds.
Getting to Mars is Hard
Lockheed Martin spacecraft specialists check the cruise stage of NASA's InSight spacecraft in this June 22, 2017, photo. The cruise stage will provide vital functions during the flight from Earth t...
More
Lockheed Martin spacecraft specialists check the cruise stage of NASA's InSight spacecraft in this June 22, 2017, photo. The cruise stage will provide vital functions during the flight from Earth to Mars, and then will be jettisoned before the rest of the spacecraft enters Mars' atmosphere.
Cruise Stage of NASA's InSight Spacecraft
MarCO-B, one of the experimental Mars Cube One (MarCO) CubeSats, took these images as it approached Mars, just before NASA's InSight spacecraft landed on the planet.
More
MarCO-B, one of the experimental Mars Cube One (MarCO) CubeSats, took these images as it approached Mars, just before NASA's InSight spacecraft landed on the planet.
MarCO-B (Wall-E) approaches Mars
InSight is lining up to land on Mars. The trip from the top of the atmosphere to the surface of Mars is 6-and-a-half minutes of sheer terror.
More
InSight is lining up to land on Mars. The trip from the top of the atmosphere to the surface of Mars is 6-and-a-half minutes of sheer terror.
Arrival
Listen to raw, unprocessed data from the seismometer on NASA's InSight spacecraft of vibrations caused by wind moving over the solar panels on Mars.
More
Listen to raw, unprocessed data from the seismometer on NASA's InSight spacecraft of vibrations caused by wind moving over the solar panels on Mars.
Raw Sounds from InSight's Seismometer on Mars

You Might Also Like

The agency is asking the NASA community to work together to develop a revised plan that leverages innovation and proven technology.
More
NASA Sets Path to Return Mars Samples, Seeks Innovative Designs
NASA Sets Path to Return Mars Samples, Seeks Innovative Designs
NASA has proven powered, controlled flight is possible on other worlds, just as the Wright brothers proved it was possible on Earth.
More
After Three Years on Mars, NASA's Ingenuity Helicopter Mission Ends
After Three Years on Mars, NASA's Ingenuity Helicopter Mission Ends
The agency established the board in May 2023 to evaluate the technical, cost, and schedule plans prior to confirmation of the mission’s design.
More
NASA Releases Independent Review's Mars Sample Return Report
NASA Releases Independent Review's Mars Sample Return Report
A pair of quakes in 2021 sent seismic waves deep into the Red Planet’s core, giving scientists the best data yet on its size and composition.
More
NASA InSight Study Provides Clearest Look Ever at Martian Core
NASA InSight Study Provides Clearest Look Ever at Martian Core
Ten sample tubes, capturing an amazing variety of Martian geology, have been deposited on Mars’ surface so they could be studied on Earth in the future.
More
NASA's Perseverance Rover Completes Mars Sample Depot
NASA's Perseverance Rover Completes Mars Sample Depot
Filled with rock, the sample tube will be one of 10 forming a depot of tubes that could be considered for a journey to Earth by the Mars Sample Return campaign.
More
NASA's Perseverance Rover Deposits First Sample on Mars Surface
NASA's Perseverance Rover Deposits First Sample on Mars Surface