Nasa Orbiter closes in on Mars

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter will soon reach the Red Planet, ending a seven-month voyage, Nasa said.

8216;8216;This mission will greatly expand our scientific understanding of Mars, pave the way for our next robotic missions later in this decade and help us prepare for sending humans to mars,8217;8217; Doug McCuistion, director of Nasa8217;s Mars Exploration Programme, said on Friday.

The probe blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center at cape canaveral, Florida, on August 12.