The Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Spacecraft was successfully launched on November 7, 1996 to the planet Mars for an extended study of the planet's surface, atmosphere, gravitational field and magnetic field. In order to achieve the scientific objectives of the mission, the spacecraft will be inserted into a low-altitude, near-polar, sunsynchronous orbit. Data will be collected and returned from six prime experiments on the spacecraft for over one Martian year (687 Earth days) and will provide for a better and magnetic field of the red planet over a two-year perijod. The MGS spacecraft with its scientific instruments will be placed in a low-altitude, near-polar, sun-synchronous orbit around hdars. This paper will describe the mission design, the science payload, the spacecraft, anid the launch vehicle for this mission.
SCIENCE PAYLOADunderstanding of the geology, geophysics, and During 687 (days of mapping operations climatology of Mars.
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