NASA's Dawn Spirals Down to Lowest Orbit
This artist's concept
shows NASA's Dawn spacecraft orbiting the giant asteroid Vesta. The
depiction of Vesta is based on images obtained by Dawn's framing
cameras. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech› Full image and caption
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December 12, 2011
PASADENA, Calif. - NASA's Dawn spacecraft successfully maneuvered into
its closest orbit around the giant asteroid Vesta today, beginning a
new phase of science observations. The spacecraft is now circling Vesta
at an altitude averaging about 130 miles (210 kilometers) in the phase
of the mission known as low altitude mapping orbit. "Dawn has performed some complicated and beautiful choreography in order to reach this lowest orbit," said Marc Rayman, Dawn chief engineer and mission manager based at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. "We are in an excellent position to learn much more about the secrets of Vesta's surface and interior."
MORE: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2011-384&cid=release_2011-384&msource=11384&tr=y&auid=9999311
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