This artist's rendering shows Pathfinder's final descent through the Martian atmosphere just minutes before it comes to a complete halt on the Martian surface. The spacecraft is enclosed in a huge cocoon of airbags, which has just been cut from a bridle, backshield and parachute. The spacecraft, protected inside the airbags, will bounce as high as a five-story building before stopping. Once it is stationary, motion detectors onboard the spacecraft will sense the lack of movement and trigger a mechanism that will deflate and retract the airbags. Painting by Pat Rawlings, SAIC.
