InSight
The Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) mission was a robotic lander designed to study the deep interior of the planet Mars. It was manufactured by Lockheed Martin Space, was managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), and two of its three scientific instruments were built by European agencies. The mission launched on 5 May 2018 at 11:05:01 UTC aboard an Atlas V-401 launch vehicle and successfully landed at Elysium Planitia on Mars on 26 November 2018 at 19:52:59 UTC. InSight was active on Mars for 1440 sols (1480 days; 4 years, 19 days).
The InSight lander with solar panels deployed in a cleanroom during preflight testing | |||||||||||
| Names | Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport Geophysical Monitoring Station (GMS) Discovery # 12 | ||||||||||
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| Mission type | Mars lander | ||||||||||
| Operator | NASA / Jet Propulsion Laboratory | ||||||||||
| COSPAR ID | 2018-042A | ||||||||||
| SATCAT no. | 43457 | ||||||||||
| Website | Mars.NASA.gov/InSight | ||||||||||
| Mission duration | Planned: 709 sols (2 years) Final: 1440 sols (4 years, 18 days) | ||||||||||
| Spacecraft properties | |||||||||||
| Manufacturer | Lockheed Martin Space | ||||||||||
| Launch mass | 694 kg (1,530 lb) | ||||||||||
| Landing mass | 358 kg (789 lb) | ||||||||||
| Dimensions | 6.0 × 1.56 × 1.0 m (19.7 × 5.1 × 3.3 ft) (deployed) | ||||||||||
| Power | 600 watts, solar / lithium-ion battery | ||||||||||
| Start of mission | |||||||||||
| Launch date | 5 May 2018, 11:05:01 UTC | ||||||||||
| Rocket | Atlas V 401 | ||||||||||
| Launch site | Vandenberg, SLC-3E | ||||||||||
| Contractor | United Launch Alliance | ||||||||||
| Entered service | 26 November 2018 | ||||||||||
| End of mission | |||||||||||
| Declared | 21 December 2022 | ||||||||||
| Last contact | 15 December 2022 (official) | ||||||||||
| Mars lander | |||||||||||
| Landing date | 26 November 2018, 19:52:59 UTC MSD 51511 05:14 AMT | ||||||||||
| Landing site | Elysium Planitia 4.5024°N 135.6234°E | ||||||||||
| Flyby of Mars | |||||||||||
| Spacecraft component | Mars Cube One (MarCO) | ||||||||||
| Closest approach | 26 November 2018, 19:52:59 UTC | ||||||||||
| Distance | 3,500 km (2,200 mi) | ||||||||||
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InSight mission logo | |||||||||||
InSight's objectives were to place a seismometer, called Seismic Experiment for Interior Structure (SEIS), on the surface of Mars to measure seismic activity and provide accurate 3D models of the planet's interior; and measure internal heat transfer using a heat probe called HP3 to study Mars' early geological evolution. This was intended to provide a new understanding of how the Solar System's terrestrial planets – Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars – and Earth's Moon formed and evolved.
The lander was originally planned for launch in March 2016. An instrument problem delayed the launch beyond the 2016 launch window. NASA officials rescheduled the InSight launch to May 2018 and during the wait the instrument was repaired. This increased the total cost from US$675 million to US$830 million.
InSight successfully landed on Mars on 26 November 2018. Due to excessive dust on its solar panels preventing it from recharging, NASA put InSight in low-power mode for detecting seismic events in July 2022 and continued monitoring the lander through the operational period ending in December 2022. On 20 December 2022, NASA announced that the InSight lander had lost communications with Earth on 15 December 2022, with the end of the mission being declared on 21 December 2022.