Now it's in triple-vision

http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/countd...o/video0lh.html

There is a thread about who we are already somewhere ( http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.php?showtopic=881 ) But it's nice to see another Brit onboard

Doug

Ahh - some of the feeds are coming back now - http://www.napacomfort.com/mars/nasa_feed.html

I wish Sky Digital would carry it in the UK - it's so frustrating to have 50+ channels which serve no purpose save that of showing what another channel was showing an hour ago, and no Nasa TV!!!

Anyhoo - those two hrs of press conferences are at about 6pm UK time, so I've got some fun viewing tonight

Doug

I've seen that fited to all mars spacecraft (MGS, MO, MEX, and now MRO) -

It MAY be to do with aerobraking - the HGA points away from the airflow during aerobraking, and I guess this cover helps tidy up airflow after it's gone around the 'back' of the dish

http://www.aerospaceguide.net/mars/mars_aerobrake.jpg shows it well

Or perhaps as someone mentioned here previously, it acts as a thermal insulator to stop the HGA acting as a massive radiator chilling the spacecraft. Perhaps it's for micro-meteorite protection acting as a very thing whipple shield.

Genesis, Stardust, Cassini, Ulysses, Voyager...DIDNT have it. MO, MGS, MO2K, MRO, MEX - all have. Must be a mars-specific thing.

First thing I thought when I saw the HGA being fitted was.. "Where's the cover?"

Doug

Well - airtime is probably split dependant on where the funds go

Doug

You would think in this modern media age - i.e. 400+ channels of television - that they could have something for everyone.

I still write regular emails to Sky Digital asking them to air NASA TV - and I'd pay for it - but they just dont care

Doug

Brilliant - todays the day they turned off most of the Analgoue NASA tv signal - so all the webfeeds are all glorious static


Doug

It's a carrot stick issue though isnt it.

Should the media give the coverage of things that are interesting, remarkable, newsworthy

OR

Should the media give the coverage that the public want (Big Brother, Michael Jackson, Jesus on a piece of toast)

And would doing the former change the requirements of the later?

Doug

Goodbye Purgatory..we barely knew ye...

well, actually, we've gotten to know ye quite well

Doug

http://www.britastro.org/news/items/2005008.html

"Saturday, 2005 September 3, Pippard Lecture Theatre, Cavendish Laboratory

09:30 David Graham, Saturn Section Director, BAA
Saturn observed from Earth

10:00 Prof. Carolyn Porco, Principal investigator, Cassini imaging system, Space Science Institute, Colorado.
Saturn and its moons observed by Cassini

11:00 Coffee

11:30 Prof. John Zarnecki, Principal investigator, Huygens surface science, The Open University
Titan observed by Huygens

12:30 Lunch and Posters

14:15 Ordinary Meeting and Martin Mobberley, BAA
Sky Notes

14:45 Dr. John Rogers, Jupiter Section Director
Jupiter and its moons observed from Earth

15:15 Dr. Richard Schmude, Jupiter & Remote Planets Sections Director, ALP
Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune observed from Earth

15:45 Tea

16:15 Jon Shanklin, Comet Section Director, BAA
Comets observed from Earth

16:45 Prof. Mike A'Hearn, Principal Investigator, Deep Impact, University of Maryland
Comets observed by Stardust and Deep Impact

17:45 Prof. Steven Squyres, Principal Investigator, Mars Exploration Rovers, Cornell University
Mars observed by Spirit and Opportunity

18:45 Transfer to College for dinner and bar"

Now - given that I would walk across hot coals for a lineup like that - I'm going to be going

Doug

Truth be told, the media would rather have a failure to moan about, than another success. Spaceprobe fails - they're like vultures. They can criticise, say it's a waste of money, then leave it alone.

Doug

I wish I could take credit - but the ammount of times I've had to get out the big bat marked 'Moderator' can be counted on one hand...in more than a year of the forum existing. It's down to the members.

Doug

Well - it's obvious NOW - but wasnt so obvious before

Doug

Well - there's a LOT of lurkers here. The give-away was when I accidentally made several forums members-read-only, registered member numbers increase by a third in a space of 48 hrs Having AS and GL post a few times is a major shot in the arm

There's a lot of forums out there, the HZ, Space.com, Mark Carey's board, the New Mars board etc etc. Some are firmly in the kookey, some are closer to what we have here, some are in the middle and I'm sure they all get a visit from the odd mission scientist or engineer for either a bit of comic relief, or enjoyment

Doug

I'd like to see peoples thoughts regarding ESA's website, it's press 'accesability', it's image release protocol etc.

What does ESA do that's good?

What does ESA do that's bad?

What does NASA do that ESA SHOULD do?

What does NASA do that ESA SHOULDNT do?

What benefits might there be etc etc

I'm trying to gauge the 'educated' public opinion on the matter. Please say, if you reply, which country you're from.

Im going to add a poll as well.

Also - please comment on specific features of NASA public relations and press activity that you find superb, and htose that you find terrible.

Doug

Do you click to save them, then wait a bit...then say where to?

Because it's already started downloading it, but when the dialogue box comes up, it's already got SOME of it, so the aparant speed is faster

Doug

Very VERY bad MI mosaic of Independance

http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/doug_images/S_MI_Ind.jpg (400kb)

Doug

" I allready am jealous to my children. Imagines what they can witness within 50 or 60 years...."

I'm jealous of those who were around when man walked on the moon and the Viking landers first touched down It works both ways

It's not long till MRO, and MEX data is beginning to come out. Then we will have Phoenix, DAWN, Cassini for years to come, so many missions yet to come, and hopefully, the amateur quarter can continue to contribute in a small way to awareness of the amazing things that people can do when they put their minds to it. If creating this place has given a home and a platform for people to do that - then it's more than I could have dreame of

Doug

gah - that first pre-deploy navcam frame of the outcrop in eagle crater...just...wow

Doug

Do keep up Bruce - it's coloured, processed, analyzed to death in the Dust Devil thread

Doug

'RAD HAS FIRED'

was my OMFG moment

Doug

The end of the line on that one - is almost visible from LL.

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/pre...-A413R1_br2.jpg

For some reason I'm in a 'wow...mars rovers' mood today -

Doug

If you buy the second volume of the Mars Mission Reports - the Opportunity Landing is on the enclosed DVD - more than 40 minutes in all

Doug

Most of mine are in www.unmannnedspaceflight.com/doug_images

I have a couple of VERY large PPT's that I used for presentations on spirit and opportunity - 80+ slides - if you want me to whack one online for you to grab, let me know

Doug