How do you get a rocket to Mars?

Prep 2 have continued their exploration of our solar system this week, but this lesson was like no other….

Having visited Mercury and Venus, Mars was the final destination. To help us learn more about Mars, we were very lucky to have some help from Doug Ellison from NASA, who is currently the Engineering Camera Payload Uplink Lead working at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California.

Putting the power of remote working fully to the test, Prep 2 eagerly joined a meeting where Doug took us through how the current Curiosity mission on Mars is investigating the red planet. With questions ranging from ‘how do you get a rocket to Mars?’ to ‘Was there life on Mars?’ Doug answered Prep 2s questions with ease, showing his genuine love and enthusiasm for the work he does.

We finished our talk full of information about how the Mars Rover programmes work, what they are searching for and plenty of inspiration. Doug and his team embody so many of the Hatherop values and we are all looking forward to watching the next rover, Perseverance, land on 18th February. Who knows, maybe one of our current Prep 2’s may end up working for NASA like Doug?