2001 Mars Odyssey: A Solid Mission

Posted by tourdemars to Mars Odyssey at March 16, 2001 12:00 PM

Still smarting from back-to-back Mars failures in late 1999, NASA hopes to reconnect with the Red Planet via the 2001 Mars Odyssey orbiter. NASA’s next Mars mission is now set for launch on April 7. Given an on-time takeoff, the craft will begin looping Mars on October 20, 2001. Once on duty, the spacecraft is assigned a two-year mission to map the planet’s surface and measure its environment. Total cost of the mission: $300 million.