CIA-RDP96-00792R000700490001-7

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700490
J. R. EYERMAN
THIS PAGE
FOLDS OUT
Practicing a dig, a Viking
lander at the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory (above) extends
its surface sampler over sim-
ulated Martian rocks Sty-
rofoam-to scoop simulated
Martian soil- earth sand.
In this manner, techni-
cians rehearsed operations
on earth before Viking per-
formed them on Mars.
In addition to the biology
instrument and two cameras,
the jeep-size lander carries
other devices (below) to
sample weather, analyze
soil and atmosphere, and re-
cord any seismic tremors.
Data from the tests are
stored on magnetic tape,
then transmitted to the or-
biter for relay to earth.
HIGH-GAIN
ANTENNA
CAMERA
TEST TARGET
BIOLOGY PROCESSOR
SEISMOMETER
LOW-GAIN
ANTENNA
GAS CHROMATOGRAPH
MASS SPECTROMETER
PROCESSOR
UHF ANTENNA
PIVOTING
CAMERA
METEOROLOGY
ASSEMBLY
TERMINAL-DESCENT
ENGINE
FOOTPAD
PIVOTING CAMERA
SURFACE-SAMPLER -
BOOM
COLLECTOR HEAD-CX
NA-MAGNET
BASED ON MARTIN MARIETTA CORPORATION DRAWING
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ART DIVISION
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After trenching the face of Mars, far left, the Viking 1 lander's soil sampler
quietly awaits further instructions. But the dirt it dug went on an amazing
chemical rampage inside the lander's biology instrument. Scientists were
cautious about interpreting early results as evidence of life. Perhaps, they theo-
rized, the nutrients or water used in the tests triggered oxidizing compounds
that do not occur naturally on earth but may be present in Martian soil

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-
2 Orbiter releases lander
inside aeroshell
Ferry mission complete,
the orbiter will continue to
circle Mars, snapping high-
resolution photographs
of the planet's surface
for up to two years.
1 Viking I enters
orbit
-
3 Lander flips over;
de-orbit engines fire
Viking 2
landing site
Utopia Planitia,
48.0 ° N., 225.7º W.
Mars
4 Entry into the
Martian atmosphere
4
Norte
Pole
5 Parachute deploys and
aeroshell shield jettisons
at 19, 400 feet .
Viking 1
landing site
Chryse Planitia,
22.4° N., 48.0° W !.
6 Terminal-descent
engines fire at
4,600 feet
EQUATOR
Valles Marineris
VIKING I
PAINTING BY PIERRE MION
"We have touchdown!"
O ENTER ORBIT, Viking 1 fires its braking
I engine (1). Landing-site safety check complete,
the orbiter releases the lander, cocooned in a sau-
cerlike, protective aeroshell (2). Since it takes as
long as 22 minutes for a radio signal to reach Mars
from earth, a computer in the lander masterminds
the landing sequence.
First, it ignites the de-orbit engines that nudge
the aeroshell out of orbit and into a landing tra-
jectory (3). As the aeroshell plunges into the Mar-
tian atmosphere, frictional temperatures up to
1,500° Celsius (2,730º F.) sear the ablative shield
(4). When the aeroshell has slowed to less than 600
miles an hour, the computer deploys a parachute
for further braking and jettisons the protective
shield (5). Later, the parachute is released.
Terminal-descent engines (6) slow the lander to
five mph and triumphant touchdown (7).
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13

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DIAGRAMS BY PIERRE MION AND ELIE SABBAN
"I almost expected to see camels," said a Viking scientist of the windswept, rock-strewn
landscape at Chryse Planitia, remarkably similar to deserts on earth. Geologists cata-
loged an unexpected variety of rocks, from basalts to breccias, from pebbles to a ten-foot-
long boulder, left. Though Viking 1 landed during Martian summer, weather instruments
atop the meteorology boom, center, recorded frigid temperatures: a low of -86°C.
(-123º F.) just after sunrise, a high of -31° C. (-24º F.) in midafternoon. Winds were light.
LAMP
ULTRAVIOLET
FILTER
LAS INLET
VALVE
"CLOSED)
CARBON-14
DETECTOR
Is food manufactured?
The pyrolytic release (PR)
experiment looks for micro-
organisms which, like plants
photosynthesizing on earth,
turn carbon gases in the air
into carbon-based, organic
molecules.
Soil is placed in a thumb-size
chamber (A). Carbon dioxide and
carbon monoxide are added, made
of traceable radioactive carbon 14.
The soil incubates beneath a lamp
that simulates Martian sunlight,
minus its ultraviolet rays. Any
microorganisms should take up
the radioactive gases. The chamber
is heated (B) to pyrolyze, or
decompose, any microbes
present into organic gases.
These gases are forced into
the organic vapor trap, which
lets other gases pass through to
a radiation detector for a first
count. Higher heating (C) then
releases organic vapors so that
they, too, escape. If these vapors
prove radioactive, they probably
come from living organisms.
CARBON -14
DETECTOR
COUNT
BACKGROUND
RADIATION
HEATER
VENT O
A
NUTRIENT
RESERVOIR
AND INJECTOR
CONTINUE COUNT
ADD NUTRIENT
ADD SOIL
AND INCUBATE
B
CONTINUE COUNT
ADD MORE
NUTRIENT
C
INCUBATE
Is food consumed?
Living organisms must eat to
sustain life. As they convert food
into energy and tissue, they
release gases, including carbon
dioxide.
In the labeled release (LR)'
experiment, radioactive nutrient
is added to a soil sample in the
.. hope that something will digest
it and give off radioactive
carbon dioxide.
A count is made (A) to
determine any background
radiation prior to the test.
Martian atmosphere and soil
are added to the chamber, and
the latter is sprayed with tiny
drops of nutrient (B). As with
the gases in the PR experiment,
these carbon compounds
contain radioactive carbon 14.
As the soil incubates, a detector
looks for a rise in radioactivity,
indicating Martian organisms are
metabolizing. After a week or two
the soil is squirted with a second
course of nutrient (C). The
de tector continues its watch.
GAS CHROMATOGRAPH
NUTRIENT RESERVOIR
AND INJECTOR
000
GAS
INLET
000
000
SOIL
CUP
ADD SOIL
A
DRAIN AND
VENT
- FIRST
MEASUREMENTS
HEATER-000
1000
HUMID
MODE
ADD NUTRIENT
B
-SECOND
MEASUREMENTS
SECOND COUNT
000
WET
MODE
- ADD MORE
NUTRIENT
C
Is the air altered?
Just by living, a creature affects
its environment. People take in
oxygen and give off carbon dioxide.
it's the same with microbes. As
they metabolize, they consume and
produce gases that can be
measured.
The gas exchange (GEX)
experiment looks for changes that
Martian microbes might cause in
gas levels over a long period.
Soil is placed in a test chamber
(A), sealed to prevent gas leakage.
A nutrient is added in two phases.
In the "humid mode," just
enough nutrient flows to the
bottom of the chamber to humidify
the soil (B). If the soil contains
dormant spores or seeds, the water
vapor might awaken them. A gas
chromatograph measures the
gases. Certain rises or falls would
indicate biological processes.
In the "wet mode," nutrient
saturates the soil (C). Measure-
ments last for several months.
For early results of these three
tests, see pages 23-26.
16 ,
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000
VENT
8000-
ORGANIC
VAPOR TRAP
HEATER
ADD SOIL
AND INCUBATE
120 HOURS
FIRST COUNT
000
HEAT TO
625° C.
HEAT TO
700℃.
0000