MAVEN relay operations

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission launched in late 2013 and began commissioning operations in September 2014 following a 10 month cruise to Mars. The Mission will study the upper atmosphere of the planet. In addition to the science instruments, the MAVEN spacecraft is equipped with an Electra UHF transceiver to support relay communication with landed assets. This paper describes how the UHF relay service was developed and validated through assembly test and launch operations (ATLO) as well as during cruise to, and transition into, Mars orbit. The discussion includes a description of the various functional and thread tests conducted during ATLO, a description of checkout activities during Cruise, a ground-based operational readiness test to simulate a future contact with the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover, and a description of an actual overflight with MSL during the Transition phase.