Argosy-UBS-Shroud-Jettison

The Argosy Spacecraft separate At just under a million miles to Mars orbit insertion. At this point, a series of precisely timed maneuvers occur. The upper section of the 2 part biological and thermal isolation shroud separates, and Reaction Control thrusters fire to distance the ships from the shroud petals. This exposes the 12 unmanned probes that will be deployed into direct entry trajectories to Mars. Four of these will return samples to the orbiting ships, while others will carry specialized rovers and experiments which will be directed from the mission spacecraft once in orbit. These will be released over the next several days in order to put them on precise final paths to touchdown points on Mars. After the probes have been dispatched, the Probe Deck will be jettisoned, exposing each ship's manned lander.

Modeled in Lightwave 10, with touch up and effects in Photoshop.
Thanks for taking a look!