NASA Dryden's F/A-18 No. 852 performed a roll during a dive toward Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards AFB with the Mars Science Laboratory's (MSL) landing radar under its left wing as part of the radar's verification and validation flight tests.
ED11-0165-15
Project: Mars Science Laboratory Landing Radar
NASA Dryden’s F/A-18 No. 852 performed a roll during a dive toward Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards AFB with the Mars Science Laboratory’s (MSL) landing radar under its left wing as part of the radar’s verification and validation flight tests.
Dryden directly supported NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) MSL mission team preparations during the three years prior to the Curiosity rover landing by conducting flight validation of the MSL’s Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) radar on a helicopter and on one of the Center’s F/A-18 aircraft.
June 1, 2011
NASA / Carla Thomas