NASA’s UFO happens to be officially known as the Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD) project, where it will beam back to Earth live imagery from a supersonic, edge-of-atmosphere test of braking technology that hails for Mars.
The entire test, which will be more than a couple of hours, will see the balloon carry the test vehicle to an altitude of 120,000 feet (37,000 meters). There will be tracking cameras that NASA has made use of this year’s test, where these tracking cameras are tipped to ensure the balloon and test vehicle remain in their sights for approximately half an hour after launch. Live video commentary is tipped to return for approximately 20 minutes prior to the LDSD test vehicle which will then drop away from the balloon, and there will be a rocket-powered segment of the flight test that kicks off, so expect the second part of the commentary to start approximately a couple of hours after the balloon launch, or if things don’t go their way, it might be as late as approximately five hours after launch.
You can check out the NASA TV Commentary here. [Press Release]