Sol 150+, Time marches on... |
Sol 150+, Time marches on... |
Oct 27 2008, 09:22 AM
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#1
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The Poet Dude Group: Moderator Posts: 5551 Joined: 15-March 04 From: Kendal, Cumbria, UK Member No.: 60 |
Sol 150 raws are up so this seems like a good time to start a new thread...
Hang on in there Phoenix... -------------------- |
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Guest_Enceladus75_* |
Oct 27 2008, 11:21 AM
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#2
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Guests |
Yes, it's heartening to see Phoenix last way past its original 90 day mission. I'd say Phoenix will make it to 180 sols - twice the length of the primary mission. I just hope that they switch the microphone on before the end. I can't wait to hear the sounds of Mars.
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Oct 27 2008, 11:29 AM
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#3
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Founder Group: Chairman Posts: 14434 Joined: 8-February 04 Member No.: 1 |
Firstly - I'd urge caution on expecting any number of sols for survival. Another 30 sols is possible, but a long way from being certain.
Also - don't get too excited by the microphone. It may not work - and if it does - it will almost certainly be unspectacular. If you want to know what Mars sounds like - go and stand 100,000ft above the Sahara at 4 in the morning when there are no aircraft around. Doug |
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Oct 27 2008, 12:05 PM
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#4
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The Poet Dude Group: Moderator Posts: 5551 Joined: 15-March 04 From: Kendal, Cumbria, UK Member No.: 60 |
I know there will probably be no real "background" sounds audible... no moaning martain wind, no rasp of dust grains trickling over the mic... but I'd settle for some clanks and clonks if they start banging those "Pots and pans" Peter Smith talked about...
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Oct 27 2008, 05:27 PM
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#5
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 1619 Joined: 12-February 06 From: Bergerac - FR Member No.: 678 |
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Oct 27 2008, 09:43 PM
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#6
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Martian Photographer Group: Members Posts: 353 Joined: 3-March 05 Member No.: 183 |
I'll echo what Doug said. Every downlink is precious now. I'm not suggesting Phoenix cannot reach sol 180, but there will be many opportunities between now and then for the capricious weather to throw Phoenix into safe mode or worse. TEGA, RA, and RAC are now living on borrowed time, and we'll need to see a smooth transition to post-RA ops before we can contemplate sol 180. A solar-powered life above the Martian arctic circle is a hard life right about now.
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Oct 27 2008, 10:07 PM
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#7
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Newbie Group: Members Posts: 3 Joined: 21-September 07 Member No.: 3910 |
Full quote of previous post removed - Mod
Does anyone know of a website which shows the Earth date equivalent of the current Mars year? What is the Earth equivalent date and also sunrise-sunset times for the Phoenix landing site? Knowing this would make the changing season more easy to understand for us Earthlings. |
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Oct 27 2008, 10:23 PM
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#8
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Member Group: Members Posts: 507 Joined: 10-September 08 Member No.: 4338 |
Does anyone know of a website which shows the Earth date equivalent of the current Mars year? What is the Earth equivalent date and also sunrise-sunset times for the Phoenix landing site? Knowing this would make the changing season more easy to understand for us Earthlings. This year, by coincidence, the northern hemisphere summer solstice on both Earth and Mars differed by only a few days. The Martian year is close to two Earth Years. Therefore, the coming winter solstice on Earth will be close to the Mars fall equinox. So it is now late summer at the Phoenix site. But Mars weather probably doesn't have much of a lag following the seasons like Earth weather does. So even late summer is getting somewhat dicey. |
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Oct 27 2008, 11:45 PM
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#9
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Administrator Group: Admin Posts: 5172 Joined: 4-August 05 From: Pasadena, CA, USA, Earth Member No.: 454 |
Does anyone know of a website which shows the Earth date equivalent of the current Mars year? What is the Earth equivalent date and also sunrise-sunset times for the Phoenix landing site? Knowing this would make the changing season more easy to understand for us Earthlings. Download the Mars24 applet and you can find sunrise/set times and also the current solar longitude. Solar longitude counts up from 0 to 360, beginning from the northern vernal equinox at 0. Earth's northern vernal equinox is around March 20; every 30 degrees of Martian solar longitude is equal to about another "month." So here are (very rough) equivalent dates to Martian solar longitude (give or take several days because of Earth's varying month lengths and because Mars' orbit is pretty elliptical, so some of its "months" last MUCH longer than others, but this is a first approximation): Ls 0 - March 20 Ls 10 - April 1 Ls 40 - May 1 Ls 70 - June 1 Ls 100 - July 1 Ls 130 - August 1 Ls 160 - September 1 Ls 190 - October 1 Ls 220 - November 1 Ls 250 - December 1 Ls 280 - January 1 Ls 310 - February 1 Ls 340 - March 1 Mars24 tells me it's currently Ls 148.5, so it's now equivalent to somewhere in the neighborhood of the third week of August. Back to school! I've got a page on the Martian calendar here that tells you more about how the lengths of the seasons vary because of the elliptical orbit. --Emily -------------------- My website - My Patreon - @elakdawalla on Twitter - Please support unmannedspaceflight.com by donating here.
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Oct 28 2008, 05:15 PM
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#10
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The Poet Dude Group: Moderator Posts: 5551 Joined: 15-March 04 From: Kendal, Cumbria, UK Member No.: 60 |
Couple of new colourisations at my online gallery, if anyone wants a look... As usual, not offered as scientififically accurate or useful, just sharing a couple of unashamedly pretty pictures.
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Oct 28 2008, 10:03 PM
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#11
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Member Group: Members Posts: 101 Joined: 29-January 06 Member No.: 667 |
The beginning of the end:
JPL Phoenix Mission News: NASA's Phoenix Mission Faces Survival Challenges Goodbye, robotic arm! Thanks! |
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Oct 28 2008, 10:12 PM
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#12
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Solar System Cartographer Group: Members Posts: 10227 Joined: 5-April 05 From: Canada Member No.: 227 |
Oh well - guess I was wrong in the other thread, it is the end for RA. I hope we get a pic of the arm's final location. Inquiring cartographers want to know!
Phil -------------------- ... because the Solar System ain't gonna map itself.
Also to be found posting similar content on https://mastodon.social/@PhilStooke Maps for download (free PDF: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/comm...Cartography.pdf NOTE: everything created by me which I post on UMSF is considered to be in the public domain (NOT CC, public domain) |
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Oct 28 2008, 10:22 PM
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#13
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Member Group: Members Posts: 524 Joined: 24-November 04 From: Heraklion, GR. Member No.: 112 |
Despite the repeated warnings, it still feels sad to see Phoenix fade away :-(
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Oct 28 2008, 11:59 PM
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#14
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Member Group: Members Posts: 548 Joined: 19-March 05 From: Princeton, NJ, USA Member No.: 212 |
very sad to see fading away
like we are losing a close family member lets enjoy our remaining time together and remember the great times we shared ken |
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Oct 29 2008, 01:33 AM
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#15
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Interplanetary Dumpster Diver Group: Admin Posts: 4404 Joined: 17-February 04 From: Powell, TN Member No.: 33 |
Dang, I forgot about solar conjunction.
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