We all saw the Mars Rover landing on the news some years back, it had a nice little baloon that blew up for protecting the impact of landing on the harsh surface of mars. Well that was great for a giant like the mars rover, however the rover cant do everything. Whats of core importance is the ability to measure tiny atmospheric fluctuations to get a more vivid picture of Mars and any future planetary exploration. Space agencies around the world are exploring ways to distribute large numbers of compact sensors or "motes" on the other planets.These distributed devices could replace larger planetary craft for relatively simple tasks, such as atmospheric sensing. But landing them safely remains a key concern. Now Danick Briand of the Université de Neuchâtel, Switzerland, and colleagues have developed a solution – miniature airbags that inflate explosively. The team realised that gas produced by micro-thrusters could rapidly inflate a tiny alloon. It built prototypes with small plugs of solid fuel inside silicon walls 1mm deep and 5mm across topped with a rubbery membrane to act as the skin of the balloon.The fuel sits on a platinum wire and ignites when enough current is supplied. Although the balloons can only be used once each, they are small enough to be packed tightly into compact spaces, he says. The researchers are now working to model the way the device works to help design future prototypes. The future for such tiny sensors packed in plenty will make individual readings of other planets in our solar ystem more vivid and give scientists a clearer picture of which planet to explore next!! Source