Question

The mars climate orbiter crashed on the surface of mars becausea. one program output thrust in terms of foot-pounds, and another program expected thrust to be expressed in terms of newtons.b. the probe lost contact with the jet propulsion laboratory when it entered the martian atmosphere.c. before programmers went on strike at subcontractor lockheed martin, one of them sabotaged the flight control software.d. a bug in the computer program caused the vehicle to consume too much fuel on the way to mars, leaving an inadequate supply for landing.e. the extreme cold of deep space caused the computer to crash.

Answer 1

Answer:

The correct answer is A. The Mars Climate Orbiter crashed on the surface of Mars because one program output thrust in terms of foot-pounds, and another program expected thrust to be expressed in terms of newtons.

Explanation:

The Mars Climate Orbiter was NASA’s unsuccessful mission to study the Martian climate, part of the Mars Surveyor 98 program. The MCO was created as a satellite-translator for the Mars Polar Lander lander, and after the latter ceased to function, it was supposed to study the Martian climate.

The Mars Climate Orbiter was destroyed when a navigation error caused the probe to be improperly elevated as it entered orbit. The vehicle was destroyed by the friction and stresses in Mars' atmosphere. An investigation showed that some data for the rocket system were calculated in English units (pound-force-second) while the navigation team expected SI units (Newton-second).