BY JUSTIN RAY

Follow the return of NASA's Genesis spacecraft with samples of the solar wind!

Additional coverage for subscribers:
VIDEO: POST-LANDING NEWS CONFERENCE QT

VIDEO: TRACKING CAMERAS FIRST SPOT CAPSULE DURING DESCENT QT
VIDEO: GENESIS CAPSULE TUMBLES TO A HIGH-SPEED IMPACT QT
VIDEO: SLOW-MOTION VIEW OF CAPSULE SLAMMING INTO GROUND QT
VIDEO: AERIAL VIEWS OF CAPSULE HALF BURIED IN IMPACT CRATER QT
VIDEO: RECOVERY HELICOPTERS TAKE OFF EARLIER IN THE DAY QT
VIDEO: NARRATED ANIMATION SHOWS ORIGINAL RETURN PLAN QT
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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2004
0345 GMT (11:45 p.m. EDT Wed.)

This collection of pictures recaps the Genesis solar wind sample return capsule making a high-speed impact into the Utah desert floor after its chutes failed to deploy during atmospheric descent from space on Wednesday. See gallery here.

0305 GMT (11:05 p.m. EDT Wed.)

Genesis' science canister loaded with the solar wind samples was transported by helicopter from the impact site to a holding area next to a specially constructed cleanroom on the Utah base, NASA announced late Wednesday.

Foil wrapping was removed from the canister and dirt brushed off before the canister was moved into the cleanroom for analysis of the contents. The Genesis team will begin examining the canister on Thursday morning.

The capsule plunged into Earth's atmosphere at 1552:47 GMT (11:52:47 a.m. EDT) and entered the preplanned entry ellipse in the Utah Test & Training Range as predicted. However, the drogue chute and parafoil failed to deploy, causing the craft to smack the ground at a speed of 193 miles per hour. The impact occurred near Granite Peak on a remote portion of the range. No people or structures were anywhere near the area, NASA said.

Meanwhile, NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe released a statement on Wednesday's landing mishap:

"We're encouraged by the news out of Utah, despite the hard impact landing of the Genesis Sample Return capsule. The spacecraft was designed in a way to give us the best chance at salvaging the valuable science payload should we suffer a landing like the one we witnessed today.

"Our re-entry plan was based on safety, and the choice of Dugway was intentional. While today's developments may be disappointing to some, I know the entire NASA family is thankful no one was injured.

"Exploration of the heavens is not an easy task. Our ability to travel throughout our solar system is limited, whether by human tended or robotic craft. Genesis was an experiment to journey far from home and return with new clues and possible answers to some of the fundamental questions regarding the origin of our universe.

"With each new mission, we push the frontiers of our knowledge and technology, and we're hopeful that what appears to be a setback, will eventually return some impressive results. After all, this isn't an Olympic event where we're awarded a medal for a perfect landing. Our final achievement will be measured by what we've learned over the entire three- year mission.

"Our scientists and engineers across NASA and our Jet Propulsion Laboratory are the best in the world. We will find out what happened to Genesis, and we'll continue our quest to accomplish the goals spelled out in our Vision for Space Exploration."

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2004

A small spacecraft carrying priceless samples of the sun crashed into the Utah desert today when its stabilizing parachute failed to deploy, bringing an innovative $264 million mission, NASA's first sample return flight since the Apollo moonshots, to a disappointing end.

The Genesis sample return canister, carrying atoms from the sun that were blown into space as part of the solar wind, was to have been plucked out of mid air by a helicopter flown by a Hollywood stunt pilot over the Utah Test and Training Range.

But a drogue chute needed to stabilize the craft before deployment of its large parafoil never fired and the craft slammed into the ground at about 193 mph.

Video showed the canister half buried in the Utah desert, largely intact. It was carrying 20 to 30 micrograms of solar wind material, the equivalent of a few grains of salt. The atoms were embedded in fragile glass-like wafers. Read our full updated story.

2004 GMT (3:04 p.m. EDT)

The recovery lead official says the 420-pound capsule is expected to be dug out by shovels and returned to the cleanroom later today.

Workers will try to man-handle the craft into a cargo net for transport. If that is unsuccessful, they will attempt to extract the solar wind canister out of the capsule.

1859 GMT (2:59 p.m. EDT)

The project manager says there shouldn't be a total loss of mission science.

1856 GMT (2:56 p.m. EDT)

A spacecraft official says none of the pyrotechnics have fired. Therefore, the fault could involve the system used to sense the G-loads to trigger an onboard timer for deployment of chutes, or the electronics that sent commands to fire the pyros or loss of Genesis' battery power.

1853 GMT (2:53 p.m. EDT)

Teams at the impact site are working to safe and secure the unfired pyrotechnics and an onboard battery that could release sulfur dioxide.

The capsule must be dug out of the ground. It will be decided later whether to remove the internal science canister holding the solar wind samples or attempt to keep the capsule in one piece to be ferried to nearby facilities.

1850 GMT (2:50 p.m. EDT)

With science canister cracked open, it remains unknown how useful the solar wind samples will be given the contamination from the Earth environment. Plans had called for the capsule to be recovered in mid-air and flown to a cleanroom to prevent contamination.

1847 GMT (2:47 p.m. EDT)

The director of helicopter flight operations was one of the people to inspect the capsule at the impact site. He says the capsule hit on its side and is half way buried into the desert floor. It is leaning 10 degrees from vertical.

The chute deployment mortar did not fire.

The capsule is "slightly breached" by a few inches from the impact, he said. The science portion of the capsule containing the solar wind samples appeared breach too.

1843 GMT (2:43 p.m. EDT)

The impact speed is estimated at 193 mph. The capsule landed within the targeted ellipse-shaped entry zone.

1841 GMT (2:41 p.m. EDT)

The news conference underway. NASA says an investigation board will be appointed within 72 hours. Precautions are being taken to handle the capsule because the ordnance used to deploy the chute and parafoil has not yet fired.

1730 GMT (1:30 p.m. EDT)

Soon after Genesis was launched in August 2001, engineers noticed potential problems with a battery in the probe's sample return canister. The canister crashed today in the Utah desert when it's stabilizing parachute failed to deploy. The cause of the mishap is not yet known and it may have nothing to do with the battery problem noted early in the mission. But for the record, here is part of a November 15, 2001, news release from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory that addressed the issue:

Project managers are monitoring the temperature of the battery inside Genesis' sample return capsule to make sure that long-term heating does not impair its performance when the capsule returns to Earth in September 2004. Although the battery is likely to become hotter than originally expected, the flight team has a number of options for managing the battery's temperature, and they do not expect the issue to affect the mission.

The mission's science requirements call for 22 months of solar wind particle collection. "In our current plan Genesis will meet and exceed that goal, collecting up to 26 months' worth of solar wind particles," said Chet Sasaki, Genesis project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

The temperature of the lithium-dioxide battery is currently at 23 degrees Celsius (73 degrees Fahrenheit), within the range anticipated by spacecraft designers. A radiator device intended to shield the battery is not working as well as expected, however, and the battery is likely to heat up to 42 degrees Celsius (108 degrees Fahrenheit). Mission managers consider this temperature to be within acceptable limits. They note that similar batteries have been maintained at 60 degrees Celsius (140 degrees Fahrenheit) for 15 months without impairing their performance. Ground tests are being conducted on lithium batteries to measure their durability at various temperatures.

The Genesis project team has been attempting to bake potential contaminants off the battery's radiator by heating the area. They are doing this with the spacecraft's sample return backshell opened just enough to allow gas trapped inside the capsule to escape, while still avoiding exposure to the Sun.

1722 GMT (1:22 p.m. EDT)

The NASA news conference from the Utah landing site is scheduled to begin at 1830 GMT (2:30 p.m. EDT).

1633 GMT (12:33 p.m. EDT)

A small spacecraft carrying priceless samples of the sun crashed into the Utah desert today when its stabilizing parachute failed to deploy, bringing an innovative $264 million mission, NASA's first sample return flight since the Apollo moonshots, to a disappointing end. Read our full story.

NASA has ended its live video feed from the landing site. We will post additional information as it becomes available. A news conference is coming up later today.

1630 GMT (12:30 p.m. EDT)

Mission control reports the navigation and targeting of the capsule for reentry was on the mark. However, a failure aboard the capsule prevented the chute and parafoil to deploy. That resulted in the capsule's impact.

NASA plans to hold a news conference later this afternoon.

1627 GMT (12:27 p.m. EDT)

Additional personnel are en route. They will safe the capsule for its removal from the impact crater.

1625 GMT (12:25 p.m. EDT)

There is nine people at the impact site now to survey the situation. One is taking up-close imagery.

1624 GMT (12:24 p.m. EDT)

Tracking teams are preserving all of their data for the failure investigation.

1622 GMT (12:22 p.m. EDT)

The recovery forces at the impact site report the chute never deployed. Therefore, they are treating the capsule as a "hot" craft since the mortar could still be armed.

1620 GMT (12:20 p.m. EDT)

Here is what should have happened:

Just over two minutes since entry interface the capsule would be at an altitude of 108,000 feet as a mortar aboard the capsule fired, releasing the 6.7-foot drogue parachute to provide stability to the capsule until the main chute is released. The capsule's heat shield will rapidly cool during this subsonic portion of the descent.

About four minutes later, three pyrotechnic bolts were to release the drogue chute from the capsule at an altitude of about 22,000 feet. As the drogue chute moved away, it would extract the capsule's main chute, a 34.6- by 12.1-foot parafoil. Full inflation of the parafoil would occur in about 6 seconds. Once inflation is complete, the parafoil and its payload will begin a slow, loose spiral descent through the skies of the Utah Test & Training Range.

However, the capsule was in a tumble and none of the chutes deployed to slow the capsule. That thwarted any mid-air recovery.

1618 GMT (12:18 p.m. EDT)

Mission control says the mortar may still be armed, having failed to fire during descent. Another scenario is the mortar fired and the drogue chute deployed only to break off as the craft plunged back to Earth.

1617 GMT (12:17 p.m. EDT)

Personnel are walking toward the capsule but keeping their distance due to concerns about the mortar being live.

1615 GMT (12:15 p.m. EDT)

The chopper crews have been told to be cautious. The mortar that should have fired on the capsule to deploy the chute may still be armed.

1615 GMT (12:15 p.m. EDT)

The recovery helicopters that were supposed to snag the returning Genesis capsule have now landed next to the capsule.

1614 GMT (12:14 p.m. EDT)

NASA officials hope there is enough of the capsule intact to determine what caused the chute deployment failure. Whether the solar wind samples will yield any science value remains to be seen. Scientists had said the samples had to be kept in ultra-clean conditions to preserve the information. However, the capsule is significantly broken as it sits on the desert floor after a high-speed impact.

1610 GMT (12:10 p.m. EDT)

Recovery forces are moving toward the capsule, which has made a very spectacular crater.

1609 GMT (12:09 p.m. EDT)

An overhead view of the impact point shows the capsule half-buried on its side. The craft appears to be badly damaged.

1605 GMT (12:05 p.m. EDT)

There is no indication what might have caused Genesis' problem. NASA says there will be an investigation to determine why the speed-slowing chute and parafoil failed to deploy.

1604 GMT (12:04 p.m. EDT)

Mission control says without the drogue chute and subsequent parafoil, the capsule would hit the ground at about 100 mph.

1602 GMT (12:02 p.m. EDT)

NASA's Genesis sample return capsule has suffered a major anomaly during its homecoming today, failing to release its chute and parafoil to slow the descent for a mid-air recovery. The craft plunged into ground a high rate of speed. The status of the solar wind samples is not yet known.

1601 GMT (12:01 p.m. EDT)

The impact point is 40.07 degrees by 113.30 degrees in Utah.

1559 GMT (11:59 a.m. EDT)

The capsule is half buried into the ground. But it appears to be mainly intact.

1558 GMT (11:58 a.m. EDT)

IMPACT! The capsule has slammed into the Utah desert after failing to deploy its chute and parafoil.

1557 GMT (11:57 a.m. EDT)

The Genesis sample return capule is rapidly tumbling with no chute.

1557 GMT (11:57 a.m. EDT)

The capsule appears to be tumbling!

1555 GMT (11:55 a.m. EDT)

After one minute of atmospheric descent, the capsule should be at an altitude of 197,000 feet as the heat shield temperature reaches a peak temperature of 4,500 degrees F.

Slightly over 10 seconds later, the capsule will be exposed to about 30 G's, the greatest deceleration it will endure during Earth entry. During this time period, the capsule's heat shield will lose an estimated about 7 pounds, or about 6 percent of its weight, as a small amount of the ablative material erodes away with the heat generated during entry through the atmosphere.

1554 GMT (11:54 a.m. EDT)

The capsule has been spotted high over the planet!

The Genesis sample return capsule has hit the upper fringes of Earth's atmosphere 400,000 feet above the planet for its trek home. The capsule contains samples of the solar wind that were collected a million miles from Earth during the three-year Genesis mission.

About 45 seconds after entry interface, the capsule will be exposed to a deceleration force three times the force of Earth gravity, or 3 G's. This arms a timer that is started when the deceleration force passes back down through 3 G's. All of the parachute releases are initiated from this timer.

1550 GMT (11:50 a.m. EDT)

Tracking systems are operating to acquire the capsule as it falls back to Earth.

As the capsule descends through the atmosphere, it will be "painted" by powerful radars located on the Utah Test & Training Range. This will provide tracking information allowing ground-based cameras to spot the capsule.

Backup tracking is provided by a Global Positioning System unit on the Genesis capsule that transmits position data to a ground station, which in turn relays the information to the mission control center.

The radar, visual and GPS data will provide an accurate plot in three dimensions for the capsule's location. This plot is generated at the mission control center located about 100 miles away from the range at Hill Air Force Base. A ground control intercept officer based at the Hill Air Force Base mission control will direct helicopter flight crews towards the capsule.

1545 GMT (11:45 a.m. EDT)

Now 10 minutes from the time Genesis will begin atmospheric entry over northern Oregon. The capsule plunge to the atmosphere at a velocity of approximately 24,700 miles per hour. The only human-made object to re-enter Earth's atmosphere at a higher speed was the Apollo 10 command module, which reached 24,861 mph.

Genesis will be stabilize with its nose down because of the location of its center of gravity, its spin rate and its aerodynamic shape.

1542 GMT (11:42 a.m. EDT)

The primary capsule recovery chopper, called Vertigo, reports it is three minutes from reaching its standby position in the sky over Utah.

1537 GMT (11:37 a.m. EDT)

The helicopters are now 6,200 feet in altitude.

1535 GMT (11:35 a.m. EDT)

"The lead helicopter will deploy an 18-1/2-foot pole with what you could best describe as an oversized, space-age fishing hook on its end," said Roy Haggard, chief executive officer of Elsinore, Calif.-based Vertigo Inc. and director of helicopter flight operations. "When we make the approach we want the helicopter skids to be about eight feet above the top of the parafoil. If for some reason the capture is not successful, the second helicopter is 1,000 feet behind the first one and setting up for its approach. We estimate we will have five opportunities to achieve capture."

1533 GMT (11:33 a.m. EDT)

A military Blackhawk helicopter is escorting the primary and backup capture helicopters. The three choppers are flying toward a spot 7.5 miles away from the recovery position at an altitude of 10,000 feet where they will wait for Genesis.

1530 GMT (11:30 a.m. EDT)

The capsule is currently high above the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and the U.S. West Coast, mission control says. It is scheduled to hit the atmosphere for reentry in about 25 minutes.

1525 GMT (11:25 a.m. EDT)

Both the primary red-colored "Vertigo" helicopter and the backup blue-painted "South Coast" choppers have just taken off from their staging point in Utah. They will fly into position for the upcoming retrieval of Genesis. It is a beautiful, clear morning at the recovery zone.

1520 GMT (11:20 a.m. EDT)

The choppers have started up. Each specially outfitted helicopter has a three-person crew.

1518 GMT (11:18 a.m. EDT)

The pilots are making final preparations for takeoff. There are two helicopters ready to retrieve the Genesis capsule -- one primary and one backup. They will have time to make about 5 tries to grab the descending capsules.

1515 GMT (11:15 a.m. EDT)

To recap the events that occurred earlier this morning, here is NASA's overview:

Sept. 8, 2004, will be a busy one for the Genesis team. It begins around 0800 GMT when NASA's Deep Space Network transmits a command to the spacecraft to initiate a computer sequence that will later release the sample return capsule.

About 1030 GMT, pyro devices will fire to sever two cable bundles connecting the spacecraft to the capsule, and the hinge connecting the two vehicles will retract. Starting about 1045 GMT, the spacecraft spins itself up to 10 revolutions per minute. The spinning will provide the unguided sample return capsule with additional stability during entry. The spacecraft then rotates to the proper orientation for release and spins up to 15 revolutions per minute. Shortly thereafter, six push-off springs will push the sample return capsule away from the spacecraft at a rate of 0.914 meters per second (3 feet per second, or slightly over 2 miles per hour). Capsule release will take place at approximately 1153 GMT at an altitude of about 65,896 kilometers (40,946 miles).

Approximately 22 minutes after separation, the Genesis spacecraft will fire its thrusters to reorient itself for a divert burn. This time lapse allows the sample return capsule to move away from the spacecraft to avoid re-contact between the two.

1500 GMT (11:00 a.m. EDT)

The sample return capsule is barrelling toward Earth's atmosphere having successfully separated from the main body of the Genesis spacecraft earlier this morning. The capsule, which contains the precious collection of solar wind samples, has no propulsion system -- it is simply aimed to the precise trajectory "keyhole" for entry into the atmosphere with no way to abort the homecoming now.

Mission navigators expect the capsule to hit the top of Earth's atmosphere at an altitude of 400,000 feet around 1555 GMT (11:55 a.m. EDT). The target "keyhole" is roughly 20.5 miles long and 6.2 miles wide over the Pacific Ocean. If the capsule enters the atmosphere anywhere inside this corridor, it will come down over the designated spot on the Utah Test & Training Range, NASA says.

After its fiery plunge through the atmosphere, a series of chute and a large parafoil will slow the capsule in preparation for a mid-air recovery by a helicopter.

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2004

NASA's Genesis satellite completes its three-year, 20-million mile voyage through space in dramatic fashion Wednesday when a capsule containing samples of solar wind returns to Earth for a mid-air capture by Hollywood helicopter stunt pilots.

The $260 million mission will bring back tiny particles that streamed from the Sun, allowing scientists to determine what was in the cloud of gas and dust from which the solar system formed 4.5 billion years ago.

The Genesis sample return capsule will enter Earth's atmosphere at 1555 GMT (11:55 a.m. EDT) over Oregon. Two minutes and one time zone later, the capsule will deploy its drogue parachute at 108,000 feet over the vast alkali flats and sagebrush of the U.S. Air Force's Utah Test and Training Range. Waiting 97,000 feet below will be two helicopters and crew bearing the space-age equivalent of a fisherman's rod-and-reel, as NASA puts it.

"From the time the drogue deploys it will take about 18 minutes for the capsule to reach a height where we can get to it," said Genesis prime pilot Cliff Fleming of South Coast Helicopters, Santa Ana, Calif. "When we are up there that may feel like a long 18 minutes but we have been training for this moment since 1999, so in the grand scheme of things another quarter-hour or so shouldn't matter much."

An important milestone in the mission was met Monday, when the Genesis spacecraft performed its final trajectory maneuver before capsule release. The spacecraft passed the Earth-Moon orbit at about 0900 GMT (8 a.m. EDT) Monday, traveling at about 2,700 miles per hour.

"Our Deep Space Network is allowing us to keep a close eye on our spacecraft and its samples of the Sun," said Genesis project manager Don Sweetnam of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. "It is right where we planned it to be. Everything is go. The navigators and engineers here at JPL are go, and the recovery team out in Utah is go, too."

Genesis is NASA's first sample return mission since Apollo 17 returned the last of America's lunar samples to Earth in December 1972.

According to current models, the solar system formed when a massive cloud of gas and dust collapsed under its own gravity. Most of this mass went into what became the Sun, while other gravitational disturbances in the collapsing nebula led to the formation of smaller bodies that eventually became planets, moons, asteroids, and comets.

For years, scientists have sought to determine the composition of that original nebula and compare it to the composition of other solar system bodies to see how those bodies have evolved over time. The best way to do this is to study the composition of the Sun which, given its huge mass, is the body most likely to have retained its original composition.

Scientists have already determined the Sun's composition to some by looking for the unique spectral signatures of elements embedded in sunlight. However, even the best spectroscopic observations do not provide planetary scientists with the precision they need to compare the Sun's composition with that of other solar system bodies. To accomplish this scientists need actual samples of the Sun they can study in the lab.

While a mission to the Sun itself to obtain samples is not technically feasible, there is a far easier and less expensive alternative. The Sun emits a steady stream of particles known as the solar wind, made of material from the Sun's upper atmosphere. By collecting samples of the solar wind, one is essentially capturing the same material that made up the protosolar nebula.

To accomplish this, Genesis launched in August 2001 and flew to the Earth-Sun L1 Lagrange point, about 1 million miles sunward of the Earth. This location, a common place for stationing spacecraft that study the Sun, is also free of the Earth's magnetic field, allowing Genesis to study the solar wind without interference. Genesis spent about two and a half years there, completing wide, looping halo orbits of L1.

While there, the spacecraft deployed several ultra-pure wafers of gold, sapphire, silicon and diamond that were designed to capture particles entrained in the solar wind. Different collectors were to be used depending on whether the solar wind is fast or slow, or if a coronal mass ejection -- a type of solar storm -- is taking place. Ion and electron detectors on the spacecraft categorized the nature of the solar wind and determined what collector arrays should be deployed at a given time.

In addition to the collector arrays, Genesis also carried a solar wind concentrator. This concentrator was designed to increase the concentration of oxygen and nitrogen ions collected by the spacecraft. Oxygen is of particular interest to scientists because they have measured different ratios of the most common oxygen isotope, O16, to two heavier versions, O17 and O18, on different solar system bodies, but do not know what the original oxygen isotope ratios were in the protosolar nebula.

After completing its collection of the solar wind, Genesis left its L1 halo orbit in April. The spacecraft performed a distant flyby of the Earth and then circled the Earth-Sun L2 point, behind the Earth, to set up for a daytime reentry over the western U.S.

Before it could touch down on Earth, however, the capsule will be captured in mid-air by helicopter so that the impact of landing does not damage the solar wind samples.

Once on Earth, the samples will be taken to a special facility at NASA's Johnson Space Center, where scientists will study them with advanced laboratory equipment to determine their composition and draw conclusions about what was in the protosolar nebula.

Scientists have high hopes that the solar wind returned by Genesis will help them resolve some key mysteries about the solar system.

"Genesis will return a small but precious amount of data crucial to our knowledge of the Sun and the formation of our solar system," said Donald Burnett, principal investigator of Genesis. "Data from Genesis will provide critical pieces for theories about the birth of the Sun and planets."