The video of last month's Mars Rover Curiosity landing on Mars is must-see TV.

If you haven't hit replay on the footage released by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory of the historic descent of Curiosity onto the Red Planet, do yourself a favor and bring it up on YouTube.

That moment — when Curiosity’s heat shield falls away, revealing a spectacular view of a dark field of sand dunes on Mars — has six degrees of separation to the midstate.

The explanation requires some “Back to the Future” vernacular — we’re talking crystal oscillators and capacitors, but suffice it to say that two midstate companies are playing a role in Curiosity’s mission.

You won’t see any of the components up-close on any of the footage. But Mount Holly Springs-based Vectron International and Newberry Township-based Die-Tech manufactured components that, although no larger than an inch, play sizable roles in the mission.

Vectron provided timing and communication components for four systems, ensuring Curiosity’s parts communicate with each other with precision.

Similarly, Die-Tech delivered die-tech stampings that are vital parts of the capacitors used in the electronic circuit boards onboard the rover.

For the electronically uninitiated, that might sound uber scientific, but that’s how it is in this line of work.

“Often time when you make electronic components, it’s not like making a car,” said Vectron spokesman Shiraz Vakharia. “It’s not a product you can touch or take home or use or see out there. It’s difficult for people to understand how these parts are used.”

Vectron components provided the communication link for four systems, including the landing gear and the chemical camera, which can detect chemicals found in rocks and samples picked up by the rover. Their parts also keep precise timing throughout Curiosity’s systems.

“Everything stays synchronized so when something is sent, it knows it’s just received it,” said David Bail, of Vectron. “That’s what we are talking about — timing — the use of clocks.”

Vectron, which specializes in military and space applications at its Mount Holly Springs site, has been in business since the late 1950s when it entered into the U.S. space program.

Since then, Vectron has been manufacturing parts used on satellites used by Google, GPS companies and weather companies, as well as defense, military, communication and scientific applications.

“We’ve been on almost every major space project,” Vakharia said. The Mount Holly Springs shop employs about 200 people, he said.

“Often times we make a product that goes into secret military stuff and we can’t talk about it,” he said. “Because this is a project that has been publicized, we want to make sure the many people who have a hand in making these parts, not only design engineers but people out on the production floor, the technology and quality people, we really want to make this as much a story that gives them pride in what work they do.”

Over at Die-Tech, Curiosity’s safe landing on Mars triggered high-fives long exchanged for their work on the other Mars rovers, Spirit and Opportunity.

The metal stamping specialist has been in this line of work since 1974, but Curiosity just seems a little different.

“Since the beginning of our company, our parts have been flying to outer space on different missions and satellites, but we haven’t gotten as much press,” said company co-owner P.K. Dennis, whose father founded the company.

She said the company, like the U.S. space project, has weathered the economy, but not without rough bumps.

“I can’t say it hasn’t been challenging in last couple of years,” Dennis said. “They’ve been some of our most profitable years, and we’ve also had some of the hardest years.”

With a staff of about 40 employees, Die-Tech manufactures electronic components used in the automobile industry, telecommunications, medical and military applications.

“As the economy contracts and people stop spending money on these things, our sales also slow down,” Dennis said.

Dennis declined to say what sort of revenue the Curiosity project yields for the family, but she said quality was perhaps the more important consideration.

“You can’t make a service call to Mars,” she said. “They have to be very reliable.”

Projects like the Mars Rover can have a big impact on young people, said Eric Darr, president of Harrisburg University of Science and Technology. Locally, the participation of midstate manufacturers can also stir an appreciation for science in students.

“To get kids to go to school for science and technology, you have to grab their attention and motivation and interest and spark this interest at an early age — elementary and middle school,” he said. “After that, it’s almost too late.

“The fact that you can see the rover, you can understand what it is, watch it do its work, that’s fantastic. It’s not like it’s make believe, an ephemeral idea. It’s something you can see and relate to as kid.”

Darr, who once worked for a company that manufactured components for the space program, underscored what it meant for Vectron and Die-Tech to have been chosen for the Mars projects.

“It speaks highly of them,” he said. “The confidence of the government in selecting them as vendors and the specifications they work under. It’s something you can feel good about yourself.”

Vakharia said a day at work often resembles a day of play.

“It absolutely is a lot of fun,” he said. “For the people that work on this, there is a lot of joking around. There’s a lot of young people out of college who are very specialized in electronics. They have a lot invested in it. They definitely enjoy what they do.”