Posted on 08/05/2012 10:40:16 PM PDT by BwanaNdege
Odyssey has safely landed on Mars and is transmitting photos.
Here comes the next data set.
A certain Congresswoman - Sheila Jackson Lee? - once asked about the flag the astronauts had left on Mars during the Apollo program....
This is one heckuva engineering achievement. Congratulations to all at JPL and all who worked on the program.
Mars is very difficult to orbit or land upon....just ask the Soviets/Russians:
Mars landing successes and failures
SUCCESSES
December 1971: The Soviet space agency’s Mars 3 lander reaches the Red Planet’s surface but its instruments stop working after 20 seconds, likely due to massive dust storms at the time of landing.
July/August 1976: US space agency lands two probes, Viking 1 and 2, the first to send images and perform chemical analysis of the soil on the Red Planet.
September 1997: NASA’s Mars Pathfinder succeeds in the first deployment of a lander and small free-ranging robotic rover on the Mars surface.
January 2004: The US space agency’s rovers Spirit and Opportunity land successfully on Mars. Opportunity continues to send back data today.
May 2008: NASA’s Mars Phoenix works for 155 days in the planet’s arctic region.
FAILURES
November 1960: Soviet space agency launches Sputnik 22, an attempted Mars flyby mission, but it disintegrates after entering Earth’s orbit.
November 1971: Soviet space agency’s Mars 2 crashes on Red Planet’s surface.
March 1974: Soviet space agency’s Mars 6 goes silent before landing.
Mars 1974: Soviet space agency’s Mars 7 is lost before entering Mars’ orbit.
November 1996: Russian space agency’s Mars 96 fails at launch.
December 1999: NASA’s Mars Polar Lander crashes on Mars.
December 2004: European Space Agency’s Beagle 2 attempts Mars landing but contact is lost before touchdown.
There have also been multiple attempts to send orbiters to circle the Red Planet or do flybys. Today there are three orbiters in operation around Mars, two US-launched (Mars Odyssey and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter) and one European (Mars Express).
Most recently was Russia’s failed attempt to launch its Phobos-Grunt spacecraft, a $165 million spacecraft designed to travel to the Martian moon of Phobos, scoop up soil and return the sample to Earth by 2014. Mission control lost radio contact with the craft hours after the November 2011 launch, and in January the 13.5 ton vessel plunged into the ocean.
In another pandering move, Obama currys favor with the LGBT community by insisting the lander be called “Bi-Curiosity.”
“Are we just trying to ruin the Martian atmosphere like we’ve done with the Earth? /sarc”
Mars’ atmosphere is 96% CO2(very cold).....2% more and Mars could warm up like Venus(very hot), which is 98% CO2.
The SUV should be the tipping point.
Radioisotope power systems (RPSs) are generators that produce electricity from the natural decay of plutonium-238, which is a non-fissile isotope of plutonium. Heat given off by the natural decay of this isotope is converted into electricity, providing constant power during all seasons and through the day and night, and waste heat can be used via pipes to warm systems, freeing electrical power for the operation of the vehicle and instruments.[37][38]
Curiosity's RTG is fueled by 4.8 kg (11 lb) of plutonium-238 dioxide supplied by the U.S. Department of Energy,[39] packed in 32 pellets each about the size of a marshmallow.[13]
Curiosity's power generator ....is designed to produce 125 watts of electrical power from about 2000 watts of thermal power at the start of the mission.[37][38] The MMRTG produces less power over time as its plutonium fuel decays: at its minimum lifetime of 14 years, electrical power output is down to 100 watts.[41][42]
The MSL will generate 2.5 kilowatt hours per day, much more than the Mars Exploration Rovers, which can generate about 0.6 kilowatt hours per day.
Heat rejection system: The temperatures can vary from −127 °C to +30 °C (−197 °F to +86 °F). Therefore, the heat rejection system (HRS) uses fluid pumped through 60 m (200 ft) of tubing in the MSL body so that sensitive components are kept at optimal temperatures.[43]
Other methods of heating the internal components include using radiated heat generated from the components in the craft itself, as well as excess heat from the MMRTG unit. The HRS also has the ability to cool components if necessary.[43]
Thanks for giving me something to ponder for a long time.
“at its minimum lifetime of 14 years, electrical power output is down to 100 watts.[41][42]”
By this time will the SUV still be able to conduct experiments, but maybe in a static and not mobile mode?
“...static mode...”
Interesting. On the press conference one of the guys said how (IIRC) there are no “consumables” that give it a limited lifespan. But wear and tear on mechanical parts exposed to the elements. (I thought of axles, etc.) So perhaps you are correct that it may lose mobility, but still be able to do something. Although I imagine it would get pretty bored sampling the same rock over and over again. ;)
The guy said they did mechanical and environmental stress tests on the rover to a certain level, and he said it is designed to last two years. However, he said that no one would be surprised if it lasted for four years and beyond.
Bold new mission? Find new tax subjects, of course. Earth is all taxed-out.
“I feel badly for these JPL guys who are feeling rudderless these days (due to Obama cuts to projects in the pipeline).”
Our daughter is a Systems Engineer at NASA on the Orion capsule, at least for now. Her husband was also one until the Obama cuts.
Thankfully, he’s got a new job that’s actually better.
The Venusian atmosphere is acidic, not mostly CO2?
Nicely done! Congratulations to all involved.
Sorry, thanks for correcting me. Late,.... senior moment...duh!
“The atmosphere of Venus is mostly carbon dioxide, 96.5% by volume. Most of the remaining 3.5% is nitrogen.”
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/Solar/venusenv.html
Okay, I was off by 1.5%.
Considering the mobile longevity of the previous rovers, I believe electrical, not mechanical will be the factor involved.
They do design rather well, but, there is always a shelf life on power.
Nice picture.
Not very diverse.
Government workers on parade. Good Lord do they have enough? All six figures I am sure.
Has Obama taken credit for it yet?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.