Launched Aug. 8, 2001, Genesis logged well over a million miles in its journey to collect atomic particles of solar wind from a region in space where the gravitational pull between the Earth and sun is balanced. The 420-pound space capsule was to have been plucked out of the air by a helicopter and returned safely to earth. Instead, it crashed into the desert due to an apparent malfunction in its parachutes.
Genesis Capsule Hits the Ground
NASA's Genesis return capsule crashed into the desert in this video due to an apparent malfunction in its parachutes. The 420-pound space capsule was to have been plucked out of the air by a helicopter and returned safely to Earth. (QuickTime 2:31)
