Space/Science — HabitableZone

Space/Science » in reply to First microscopic camera shots of heat shield

re: First microscopic camera shots of heat shield

Seeing this stuff lying wrecked on the Martian surface - a truly alien artefact to the planet - gives one pause to consider some of the UFO myths about finding a wrecked alien craft on Earth and Back-engineering it.

Imagine our ancestors of a mere 100 years ago finding this debris and trying to make sense of what it was and how it worked. They would appreciate the workmanship, but would have problems comprehending how it was built, or what the alloys were and what gave them their properties of strength and workability.

As for the composite materials, they would be totally baffled and might ascribe an organic origin to them. And the TPS - you'd need to understand what it was like before re-entry and before the crash. Replicating it in the as-is condition woulld guarantee you a burn-up if you tried it!

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