Click on the image for the animation
This video shows the propulsion system on an engineering model of NASA's
Phoenix Mars Lander being successfully tested. Instead of fuel, water is
run through the propulsion system to make sure that the spacecraft holds
up to vibrations caused by pressure oscillations.
The test was performed very early in the development of the mission, in
2005, at Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver. Early testing was possible
because Phoenix's main structure was already in place from the 2001 Mars
Surveyor program.
The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf
of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin
Space Systems, Denver.
