How Aerocapture Maneuvers Save Thousands of Gallons of Mars Fuel

Did you know that a spacecraft arriving at Mars can lose enough speed to enter orbit simply by grazing the planets air, without firing its main engines at all? When a vehicle travels from Earth, it moves at high speeds that would normally require massive amounts of fuel to slow down upon arrival. By using the thin layer of gases surrounding Mars, engineers can turn a dangerous approach into a controlled arrival. You can imagine the Martian atmosphere as a giant, invisible cushion. As the spacecraft enters this layer, the friction between the hull and the gas molecules creates drag - this resistance converts the kinetic energy of the moving craft into heat - this heat is then managed by a shield, allowing the vehicle to slow down safely.