Genesis (spacecraft)

Genesis was launched on August 8, 2001 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Its mission is to collect solar wind material expelled from the Sun. Even though the Sun is made up mostly of hydrogen and helium, scientists believe the star contains over 99% of all matter that comprises the Solar System. Previous studies during NASA's Apollo missions indicated small amounts of 60 other elements were found in solar material.

The mission is about collecting particles from the solar wind. They will be returned to Earth with a capsule. The capsule will be grabbed by a helicopter in midair above the Utah desert.

Genesis reached its destination in November 2001 and has been collecting data since December 2001, when the spacecraft extended its collector arrays to catch atoms from the solar wind. The concentrator, a newly designed instrument for this mission, was installed to collect specific elements of solar wind. Genesis will continue to harvest solar material until April, when the mission's payload will be retracted and delicately stowed in the SRC container. The SRC will then be nestled in the spacecraft to make its five month voyage back to Earth.

Several hours before entering Earth's atmosphere, the SRC is jettisoned from the spacecraft. About 19 miles above the ground, the first parachute opens, slowing its descent. Almost 1.5 miles from the ground, a large parafoil, similar to that used by sky-divers, opens and slows the capsule's fall to about 10 miles an hour. A chase helicopter (with another on duty as a back-up), equipped with specially designed retrieval equipment, lines-up for the mid-air capture and hooks onto the payload. The SRC is then gently lowered to the ground team anxiously awaiting its arrival and containment.

The samples will be stored under ultra-pure clean-room conditions and made available to the world's scientific community for study.

See also

• http://genesismission.jpl.nasa.gov/

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