Genesis Mishap Investigation Board Status Report

The NASA Genesis Mishap Investigation Board (MIB) arrived at Dugway Proving Ground (DPG), Utah, September 10, to take charge of the investigation. The Genesis Sample Return Capsule (SRC) impacted the ground after its drogue and parafoil systems failed to deploy during re-entry September 8. Dr. Michael Ryschkewitsch is the leader of the MIB.

Thanks to excellent work by the Genesis Project Team, functioning as an initial response team, the wreckage of the SRC and its contents of scientific samples were recovered from the dry lakebed. The science team continues work securing and curating the recovered sample materials, working independently from the activities of the MIB.

Since the initial recovery of the hardware, an inventory was made of the impact crater, both by visual examination and metal detector, to ensure no significant wreckage remains. The recovery team finished its work and turned the impact crater site back over to DPG.

The team finalized plans for preparing and transporting the SRC wreckage to Lockheed Martin Space Systems' facilities in Denver, where the spacecraft was built and tested.

The MIB determined all the science-specific hardware is not relevant to the Board's work in determining the causes of the mishap. That hardware was released to the Project's Science and Curation Team for continued processing. At the request of the Board, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., and Lockheed Martin have begun the process of sorting and assembling the Genesis records and data.

Source: NASA