NASA shares first colored image of Schiaparelli lander crash site on Mars

First colored image of the Schiaparelli lander crash site revealed by NASA shortly after Halloween.

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The European Space Agency’s goal of studying Mars in a better position took a blow last month when the Schiaparelli lander crashed shortly after its successful atmospheric entry. Initial reports suggest that its descent-slowing thrusters malfunctioned, failing to fire for long enough to support a smooth landing.
Shortly after the crash, the American space agency, NASA, quickly moved the ‘eyes’ of the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, or the MRO, to look for the debris of the ill-fated ESA lander.
On October 21st, the NASA MRO identified new markings on the Red Planet which scientists believe are from the ExoMars Schiaparelli. Several days after that, the space agency confirmed in a post, with high-resolution image taken by the said orbiter, that the markings were indeed from the Schiaparelli.
And shortly after Halloween, NASA has unveiled the first colored picture of the ExoMars lander crash site. Using the orbiter’s HiRISE, or the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment camera, scientists have identified three locations where parts of the Schiaparelli reached the ground. The image below shows the lander itself, the heat shield, the back shell and the parachute.


The lander module can be seen in the upper image, while the back shell and the parachute at the lower left. Meanwhile, the heat shield in black and white at lower right.
The Schiaparelli lander was one of the pieces of the ESA’s Mars mission called ExoMars 2016. The Trace Gas Orbiter, or the TGO, was successfully placed into orbit around the Red Planet on the same date.
The TGO carry two instruments capable of studying the distribution of methane in the Martian atmosphere. India’s orbiter is also looking for methane, but has not found signs of it yet as of the latest science report.
ESA said in a statement that further imaging will follow in the next fourteen days to give scientists more information about the crash. An independent inquiry board has been initiated, it added.