Sequence of Events:

07/04/97 17:07:14 Approximate Time of Bridle Cut

07/04/97 17:07:16 Approximate Time of Time of First Impact

07/04/97 17:08:14 Approximate Time of Roll Stop

At approximately 17:07:14 at a height of 10 meters or 32 feet, the bridle is cut and the Pathfinder spacecraft falls the remaining distance to the surface of Mars. Gravity on Mars is about one third that of Earth, so the impact velocity will be less than if the lander was dropped from the same height on Earth. The velocity at impact will be around 45 miles per hour and the deceleration on the first bounce will be less than 40 g's.