The underside of the capsule will get hot as it pushes up against the Martian air - the heat shield will experience temperatures above 2, 000C.

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The frame is no longer assembled from laser-etched wood, instead there's a powder-coated steel frame with PVC plastic sides to help shield the various moving parts and lend an air of professionalism to the affair.

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This was accomplished by a heat shield, a parachute and some retro-rockets and, finally, air bags that inflated just before touchdown.

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Numerous helicopter companies (most based in Lihu'e) offer up-in-the-air jaunts over waterfall-striped Mt Wai'ale'ale, the island's central shield volcano and one of the wettest spots on Earth, and the sheer-hewn sea cliffs of the Na Pali coast, accessible otherwise only by ocean kayak.

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