Wind River Powers 'Brain' For NASA's Mars Phoenix Lander

VxWorks enables Jet Propulsion Laboratory's space mission-criticality, for the ninth time.

NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft will launch in Florida this August 3rd, with the intention of landing on a Martian arctic plain next spring. A collection of instruments, including a robotic arm and soil-sampling facilities will be on-board, powered by the Rad6000 onboard computer - running Wind River VxWorks.

It was revealed today that the Rad6000 will be running VxWorks for Rad6000, created by Device Software Optimisation (DSO) experts Wind River. Wind River VxWorks platforms are designed for device software developers who build differentiated devices requiring a small footprint, high performance, and real-time, deterministic behaviour.

Like the other Rad6000 systems used on previous Mars exploration projects, there is only one main, general-purpose computer on board the Phoenix. Its jobs include controlling the execution of trajectory correction manoeuvres calculated by navigators during cruise phase and controlling EDL (Entry, Descent and Landing) manoeuvres.

Phoenix is the first mission of NASA's Mars Scout Program of competitively proposed, relatively low-cost missions to Mars. Selected in 2003, Phoenix saves expense by using a lander structure and other components originally built for a 2001 mission that was cancelled while in development. VxWorks allows standardisation across projects, revisions and organisations - reducing tool investment, capital cost and training time.

VxWorks provides a highly integrated, feature-rich technology platform with a heritage of successful deployment by JPL in both on-planet and deep-space robotic experiments. This deployment builds on a successful track record of 8 successful Mars and Deep-Space missions with Wind River on board, including the Mars Rover and Stardust missions.

"If you wanted to look at the craft as a body, and the various science stations as senses, the Rad6000 running VxWorks would be the brain," commented Mike Deliman, Wind River's engineering specialist for the Phoenix project.

He continues: "The Wind River team assisted them with their applications as needed, but JPL researchers and other Phoenix team members created nearly all of their applications themselves. We leave those tasks to the experts."

Phoenix will use a robotic digging arm and other instruments to determine whether the soil environment just beneath the surface could have been a favourable habitat for microbial life. Studies from orbit suggest that within arm's reach of the surface, the soil holds frozen water.

About Wind River

Wind River is the global leader in device software optimization (DSO). Wind River enables companies to develop, run and manage device software faster, better, at lower cost and more reliably. Wind River platforms are pre-integrated, fully standardized, enterprise-wide development solutions. They reduce effort, cost and risk and optimize quality and reliability at all phases of the device software development process from concept to deployed product.
Founded in 1981, Wind River is headquartered in Alameda, California, with operations worldwide. To learn more, call 1-800-872-4977 or visit Wind River at http://www.windriver.com.

More information:

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Wind River GmbH
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E-Mail: evi.hochholzer@windriver.com
Internet: http://www.windriver.com

This release was published on openPR.