A European antenna in Australia will soon begin tracking the US mission preparing for landing on Mars. The antenna of the city of New Norway from ESA is located in the red and dusty desert of Western Australia, over which hangs the amazing starry sky of the Milky Way. From here, the antenna will provide support for the NASA InSight landing pad, which is to land on the dry and dusty landscape of the Red Planet on November 26.
Somewhere 12 hours before landing and during the most recent maneuver to adjust the target, before the InSight enters the Martian atmosphere, a 35-meter antenna will communicate with the landing gear. An antenna in the city of New Norway regularly supports ESA missions traveling throughout the solar system (Mars Express, TGO, Gaia and BepiColombo). TGO ESA must join NASA orbiting devices to receive signals from InSight after the vehicle lands on the Martian surface and transmits them back to Earth. This will be the world's first support for data relay between missions of various agencies on Mars. On the NASA page will be a live broadcast of the landing mission InSight.
