![NASA Launches Mars ‘Flying Saucer’ On Earth](http://townsquare.media/site/241/files/2013/09/NASA.jpg?w=980&q=75)
NASA Launches Mars ‘Flying Saucer’ On Earth
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A high-altitude balloon carrying a saucer-shaped vehicle for NASA has taken off from a Hawaii island to test technology that could be used on Mars.
Since the twin Viking spacecraft landed on the red planet in 1976, NASA has relied on the same parachute design to slow landers and rovers after entering the thin Martian atmosphere.
Saturday's experimental flight high in Earth's atmosphere is testing a brand-new vehicle and giant parachute designed to deliver heavier spacecraft and eventually astronauts.
High winds at the Kauai military range forced NASA to miss its original two-week launch window in June.
Engineers will analyze the data to determine if the "flying saucer" test was successful. NASA will conduct more tests next year before deciding whether to fly the parachute on a future Mars mission.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
More From News Talk 96.5 KPEL
![Donald Trump Has Made His Vice Presidential Pick](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-GettyImages-2159730000.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Man Wins $100,000 With Lottery Strategy From Watching ‘Lottery Changed My Life’](http://townsquare.media/site/33/files/2022/04/attachment-giorgio-trovato-BRl69uNXr7g-unsplash.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Louisiana to be Prominently Featured at Republican National Convention](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-RNC-LOGO.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![What We Know About the 20-Year-Old Man Who Tried to Assassinate Donald Trump](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-GettyImages-2161922154.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Local Officer Encountered Gunman Just Before He Shot Toward Trump at Rally](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-GettyImages-2161922387.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Man Killed at Trump Rally Identified as Former Fire Chief, ‘Girl Dad’ who ‘Died a Hero’](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-Untitled-design-2024-07-14T144115.615.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![UPDATE: Trump Safe, Shooter Neutralized After Shots Fired at Rally](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-Shooting-Trump-Rally-Pennsylvania.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Did Authorities Spot the Loch Ness Monster On a Texas Highway?](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-Screen-Shot-2024-07-09-at-8.07.05-AM.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![‘Birds Aren’t Real’ Movement Claim Birds Are a Government Conspiracy](http://townsquare.media/site/33/files/2021/06/attachment-Birds-Arent-Real-2.jpg?w=980&q=75)