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From: Steven L. Wilson Sr <Ndunlks@aol.com>
Date: Thu, 24 Sep 1998 16:43:50 EDT
Fwd Date: Fri, 25 Sep 1998 10:59:54 -0400
Subject: Re: Mars Surveyor To Tighten Orbit

 Mars Surveyor To Tighten Orbit

 .c The Associated Press

PASADENA, Calif. (AP) -- The Mars Global Surveyor fired its main
rocket engine to descend toward the fringes of the Martian
atmosphere in an effort to tighten its orbit around the red
planet.

The 14.8-second engine burn Wednesday morning was successful in
using aerobraking to slow the spacecraft's speed. Engineers are
trying to narrow the spacecraft's large elliptical orbit into a
tight circle.

The $250 million mission, launched in 1996, began orbiting the
planet in September 1997. It was designed to map Martian terrain
for a Martian year, equivalent to 687 Earth days.

It was supposed to begin mapping the surface of the planet last
March, but a problem with a solar panel in October 1997 forced a
suspension of aerobraking and a delay in the overall mission
plan.

The rocket firing was designed to drop its altitude at the point
of closest approach from 106.5 miles to 79 miles. At the
farthest point of its elliptical orbit, the spacecraft is 11,083
miles from the planet.

Dips into the atmosphere should now occur every 11.6 hours, JPL
said. After five more months of aerobraking each orbit should
take less than two hours.

Mars is currently 213 million miles from Earth.

AP-NY-09-23-98 2248EDT

Copyright 1998 The Associated Press.The informationcontained in
the AP news report may not be published,broadcast, rewritten or
otherwise distributed withoutprior written authority of The
Associated Press.