Labels: text | screenshot | wheel OCR: Japan's Planet-B mission OTEBOON CURRENT SPACE PROGRAMS 1998: Japan joins the race to Mars PERSPECTIVES AND PROJECTS The Japanese Institute of Space and Astronomical Science is planning to launch a Mars orbiter. The mission has been christened Planet-B. Its primary goal is to study the WORKS OF SPACECRAFT interactions of the Martian atmosphere and the solar winds. Microspacecraft will have The spacecraft will probably be launched by an M-V focused science objectives and booster. This mission merely underscores Japan's increasing can be launched in groups to interest in space exploration. forwe landed networks. The Mars Together project During the days of the Apollos missions, the United States and the Soviet Union were battling for the lead in the space race. Then, European and Asian countries leapt into the fray with their own space programs. In recent years, countries all over the globe have cut back their budgets drastically, and it has become increasingly clear that no single nation can afford the high cost of missions like those to Mars. Today, in order to pool their funding and knowledge, several countries have joined hands in the Mars Together project. Scheduled for launch in 1998, the Mars Together spacecraft will be equipped with a Mars 96- or Global Surveyor-type orbiter, a Russian Lavochkin rover, and an American Sojourner-type mini-rover. MARS BETAT
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