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Artist's impression of the Schiaparelli module touching down on Mars

2016-06-20 - On October 19, 2016, the European Space Agency’s Schiaparelli lander will enter the Martian atmosphere at an altitude of about 121 km and a speed of nearly 21 000 km/h. Less than six minutes later it will have landed on Mars.

A braking system will slow the module from a speed of about 250 km/h at an altitude of 1.1 km to 4 km/h at 2 m. Schiaparelli’s thrusters will then be cut off and the module will fall freely to the surface. The force of the impact as it touches down will be absorbed by a crushable structure on the underside of the lander. (Credits: ESA, ATG Medialab)

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Photo taken on June 20, 2016

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