Bruce Murray Space Image Library

InSight tether storage box opening

InSight tether storage box opening
InSight tether storage box opening Once the seismometer was placed in its final location on the ground, engineers commanded InSight to open up the storage box that held the rest of the tether, allowing the remaining length to fall to the ground. The tether will expand and contract with the temperature changes of every Martian day and night, so it's important that there be plenty of slack in the line to accommodate those changes. NASA / JPL-Caltech