Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer

Originally designed for a future Mars Penetrator mission, probes such as this have been extensively tested for planetary exploration. Instruments on a comet nucleus penetrator could relay back information on composition of unaltered subsurface comet material, the variation in temperature near the surface, and the strength of the surface. This penetrator was produced in the 1980s for drop tests in planning for a future Mars mission.

Transferred by NASA Ames Research Center

 Display Status

This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Country of Origin United States of America Type SPACECRAFT-Uncrewed-Test Vehicles Manufacturer NASA Ames Research Center
 Dimensions 3-D: 119.4 x 8.9cm, 18.1kg (47 x 3 1/2 in., 40lb.)
 Materials aluminin and tungston steel
 Inventory Number A19850393000 Credit Line Transferred by NASA Ames Research Center Data Source National Air and Space Museum Restrictions & Rights Usage conditions apply
For more information, visit the Smithsonians Terms of Use.