The West Valley Route |
The West Valley Route |
Mar 18 2009, 12:00 PM
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#1
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Senior Member Group: Moderator Posts: 4279 Joined: 19-April 05 From: .br at .es Member No.: 253 |
Here're the latest navcam pictures taken during sol 1850: http://nasa.exploratorium.edu/mars/spirit/navcam/2009-03-18/
Spirit is no longer stuck, but I think the attempt to go on top of HP via the NE path is finished and we are going to the West Valley. A pancam mosaic of the western route is planned for tosol. |
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Mar 25 2009, 12:25 AM
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#61
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Member Group: Members Posts: 701 Joined: 3-December 04 From: Boulder, Colorado, USA Member No.: 117 |
Since Sol A 779 we drove about 859 m. I doubt the RF wheel has worn out significantly. It definitely is not like this. Paolo Amazing video! I guess physics is a bit different at 200 mph than at 0.1 mph. I wonder if anyone has considered going out in the arroyo at JPL and actually trying the wheel-dragging experiment? Could be a fun lunchtime project, though only if there are rover wheels, or equivalents, available for sacrifice... John. |
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Mar 25 2009, 12:32 AM
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#62
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Member Group: Members Posts: 236 Joined: 5-June 08 From: Udon Thani Member No.: 4185 |
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Mar 25 2009, 12:46 AM
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#63
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3419 Joined: 9-February 04 From: Minneapolis, MN, USA Member No.: 15 |
Probably just a few remains of shrimp tails and a couple of empty Fosters cans that you guys brought from Down Under. There goes the concept of guarding against terrestrial contamination on Mars! -the other Doug -------------------- “The trouble ain't that there is too many fools, but that the lightning ain't distributed right.” -Mark Twain
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Mar 25 2009, 01:57 AM
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#64
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Member Group: Admin Posts: 976 Joined: 29-September 06 From: Pasadena, CA - USA Member No.: 1200 |
Amazing video! I guess physics is a bit different at 200 mph than at 0.1 mph. I wonder if anyone has considered going out in the arroyo at JPL and actually trying the wheel-dragging experiment? Could be a fun lunchtime project, though only if there are rover wheels, or equivalents, available for sacrifice... John. Just outside the ISIL (the sandbox where we have the engineering model) there is a paved parking lot. I drove the testbed both in the Opportunity and Spirit configurations. In both configurations it sends chills down my spine. Sure, the different gravity field makes quite a difference, still it is not a pretty sight (or sound). In case you ask, this was done when I did the testing of driving with the IDD unstowed. Paolo -------------------- Disclaimer: all opinions, ideas and information included here are my own,and should not be intended to represent opinion or policy of my employer.
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Mar 25 2009, 02:02 AM
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#65
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Member Group: Admin Posts: 976 Joined: 29-September 06 From: Pasadena, CA - USA Member No.: 1200 |
I wonder if Mars will manage to erase this. No questions about it. Give it 30-50 years and all tracks from both vehicles will be erased. Even Purgatory and Tyrone. The RAT holes will last longer. Hopefully someONE will see them in person before they get erased. It is quite intimidating thinking that the holes I helped drill on Mars will last quite a bit more than I will. Paolo -------------------- Disclaimer: all opinions, ideas and information included here are my own,and should not be intended to represent opinion or policy of my employer.
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Mar 25 2009, 09:24 AM
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#66
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Senior Member Group: Moderator Posts: 4279 Joined: 19-April 05 From: .br at .es Member No.: 253 |
This is from Scott Maxwell's blog "Mars and Me" entry for sol 80 i.e. five years ago:
"... Basically the entire extended mission will be devoted to exploring the Columbia Hills. Of course, first we have to get there, or try to. They're planning 60 sols, plus 30 contingency sols, for that. Over the next few days, they'll try to work out how long it will take to drive there, and how long Spirit is likely to last. This will tell them how much time they have left over to do science at random targets of interest along the way." |
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Mar 25 2009, 12:43 PM
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#67
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Forum Contributor Group: Members Posts: 1372 Joined: 8-February 04 From: North East Florida, USA. Member No.: 11 |
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Mar 25 2009, 12:45 PM
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#68
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Forum Contributor Group: Members Posts: 1372 Joined: 8-February 04 From: North East Florida, USA. Member No.: 11 |
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Mar 25 2009, 02:00 PM
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#69
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Senior Member Group: Admin Posts: 4763 Joined: 15-March 05 From: Glendale, AZ Member No.: 197 |
The RAT holes will last longer. .... It is quite intimidating thinking that the holes I helped drill on Mars will last quite a bit more than I will. Even on Earth you can find chiseled graffiti from hundreds of years ago in very exposed soft rocks. I can imagine a rat hole in basalt on Mars lasting a thousand years. http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM18ZQ -------------------- If Occam had heard my theory, things would be very different now.
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Mar 25 2009, 02:34 PM
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#70
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 4251 Joined: 17-January 05 Member No.: 152 |
Just to be clear, that's not the rim of Gusev, it's Grissom Hill and a few other features well within Gusev. But it is a spectacular view! |
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Guest_Oersted_* |
Mar 25 2009, 03:26 PM
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#71
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Guests |
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Mar 25 2009, 05:52 PM
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#72
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Member Group: Members Posts: 753 Joined: 23-October 04 From: Greensboro, NC USA Member No.: 103 |
Even on Earth you can find chiseled graffiti from hundreds of years ago in very exposed soft rocks... ...or from 4,600 years ago... http://i407.photobucket.com/albums/pp155/t...09/IMG_3734.jpg -------------------- Jonathan Ward
Manning the LCC at http://www.apollolaunchcontrol.com |
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Mar 25 2009, 06:14 PM
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#73
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 2922 Joined: 14-February 06 From: Very close to the Pyrénées Mountains (France) Member No.: 682 |
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Mar 25 2009, 06:35 PM
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#74
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Member Group: Members Posts: 753 Joined: 23-October 04 From: Greensboro, NC USA Member No.: 103 |
Although maybe a little better protected in the cave! And we couldn't get the MERs down in a cave anyway...they're getting precious little sunlight as it is.
-------------------- Jonathan Ward
Manning the LCC at http://www.apollolaunchcontrol.com |
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Mar 25 2009, 07:20 PM
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#75
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Member Group: Members Posts: 237 Joined: 22-December 07 From: Alice Springs, N.T. Australia Member No.: 3989 |
Give it 30-50 years and all tracks from both vehicles will be erased. I've often wondered how long it would take to erase the wheel tracks! Knowing the rate at which they are being erased in different soil types, wind regimes etc could give a lot of very interesting info on geological time frames. In fact, just from the tracks themselves there must be a lot of info (additional to the dragged wheel discoveries). Is anyone studying this - any papers on it - earlier comments in UMSF - or any one got any comments on this? |
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