Alien Wreckage on Mars

Of course the aliens in this case are us! An aerospace engineering student on Twitter put together this neat 3D model of the Mars rover’s back shell and parachute crash site.

On Sol 414 the Ingenuity mars helicopter scouted the crash site of the parachute and backshell that brought it and the rover safely through the atmosphere before it was jettisoned and crashed on the surface.
Interactive version on @Sketchfab: https://t.co/2t5Hh9O3bA pic.twitter.com/GAve6zZ1pJ

— Simeon Schmauß (@stim3on) June 5, 2022

Last year NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory released some amazing footage of the entry, descent and landing process where you can see the parachute and sky crane system working to safely drop off the nuclear powered golf-cart sized rover on the surface.