<p>NASA engineers are working on new technologies that will help spacecrafts land on an alien planet or a comet in real time based on what they see before them.<br /><br /></p>.<p>One technology called the Autonomous Descent and Ascent Powered-flight Testbed (ADAPT) allows the team to approximate the high-speed landings that spacecraft experience when touching down on planets like Mars, the US space agency said in a statement.<br /><br />Another technology called Lander Vision System (LVS) allows the spacecraft to determine its position relative to its specified landing site.<br /><br />During descent, it acquires real-time images of the surface and compares them to previously acquired maps of the area - allowing it to identify its landing spot and change course without intervention from flight engineers, Engadget reported.<br /><br />The NASA team is also testing a system called Guidance for Fuel-Optimal Large Diverts (G-FOLD).<br /><br />It takes information from LVS about deviations from the intended landing spot and calculates the most fuel-efficient route to get there.<br /><br />"A future spacecraft could use LVS and G-FOLD to first autonomously determine its location and then optimally fly to its intended landing site," said Nikolas Trawny, member of the project.<br /><br />So far, the new systems have been tested successfully on Earth.<br /><br />--Indo-Asian News Service<br />na/pku/vt<br />(198 Words)<br />20031330</p>
<p>NASA engineers are working on new technologies that will help spacecrafts land on an alien planet or a comet in real time based on what they see before them.<br /><br /></p>.<p>One technology called the Autonomous Descent and Ascent Powered-flight Testbed (ADAPT) allows the team to approximate the high-speed landings that spacecraft experience when touching down on planets like Mars, the US space agency said in a statement.<br /><br />Another technology called Lander Vision System (LVS) allows the spacecraft to determine its position relative to its specified landing site.<br /><br />During descent, it acquires real-time images of the surface and compares them to previously acquired maps of the area - allowing it to identify its landing spot and change course without intervention from flight engineers, Engadget reported.<br /><br />The NASA team is also testing a system called Guidance for Fuel-Optimal Large Diverts (G-FOLD).<br /><br />It takes information from LVS about deviations from the intended landing spot and calculates the most fuel-efficient route to get there.<br /><br />"A future spacecraft could use LVS and G-FOLD to first autonomously determine its location and then optimally fly to its intended landing site," said Nikolas Trawny, member of the project.<br /><br />So far, the new systems have been tested successfully on Earth.<br /><br />--Indo-Asian News Service<br />na/pku/vt<br />(198 Words)<br />20031330</p>