What happens between launch and discovery?

How do commands, pointing, power, storage, light-time, and a scheduled ground contact become one trustworthy observation?

Operate a simplified planetary encounter from sequence validation through observation and data return. Every science product depends on an engineering chain.

A planetary orbiter maps Mars while a high-gain antenna sends stored data toward distant Earth. — Vastward artistic reconstruction. The data pulse, mapping swath, and Earth link are visual metaphors for separate operations and are not one simultaneous photograph.

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