MDV/MAV

The Ares Missions to Mars used a relay system to travel back and forth from Earth to Mars. The original Ares booster rocket would rendezvous with Hermes which was in orbit around earth. It was the spacecraft that had the power and strength to withstand the journey from Earth’s orbit to Mars. “The Martian” is the story about Ares 3, the third mission to Mars. The two missions that had gone before had succeeded without any major incidents or problems.

When the Ares 1 and 2 crews arrived in Hermes and began their orbits around Mars, the final stage for the crew to actually ascend to the planet’s surface was to take the MDV (Mars descent vehicle) that was contained on the Hermes down to the planet. The Ares missions were pre-supplied with equipment for their eventual arrival. The most important piece of equipment included in...