After Victoria..., .. what next? |
After Victoria..., .. what next? |
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![]() The Poet Dude ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Moderator Posts: 5551 Joined: 15-March 04 From: Kendal, Cumbria, UK Member No.: 60 ![]() |
I know we've had rather light-hearted discussions about this before, with most people agreeing that Oppy is likely to end her days inside or on the edge of Victoria Crater, simply because there's nothing else to investigate within reach, but has Steve S got it in his mind that Oppy will head off somewhere else after Victoria? This report could be read in a way that suggests that...
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#2
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![]() Member ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Members Posts: 656 Joined: 20-April 05 From: League City, Texas Member No.: 285 ![]() |
Heading due east from Victoria would indeed be a very bad idea, there is a huge dune field over there. On the other hand, a look at the HiRISE image suggests that there is a route which is initially due south, then curves east through a region which appears generally more traversable than what Oppy covered heading to Vicky.
[attachment=10605:attachment] There are still some touchy areas to cover, but much of this is relatively open stretches of evaporite. Typically, it looks a lot like this up close: [attachment=10606:attachment] [attachment=10607:attachment] The HiRISE coverage is insufficient to map the complete route in detail, but there's enough to show that Oppy can make it to the edge of coverage without too much difficulty, particularly factoring in the new nav software. As ustrax pointed out earlier, http://marsoweb.nas.nasa.gov/HiRISE/hirise...SP_001414_1780/ The overview suggests that, once the HiRISE gap is filled-in, a navigable route to the west rim of Ithaca is entirely feasible. Boring? I think not as bad as prior to Vicky, and the destination is already visible. There will be various outcrops and craters along the way, and lot's of entertainment in projecting where Oppy will go next. Plus Oppy ought to be moving quickly enough to guarantee some regular changes in scenery. As to scientific value, this takes us into an entirely new geological realm, not only the Ithaca rim peaks themselves, but the interior of Ithaca as well - which the MOLA maps indicate is substantially (hundreds of meters, as I recall) lower than than Vicky, and thus having the potential of having once contained standing water. Taking Oppy in any other direction would just see more of the same fractured/layered evaporite - talk about boring. Assuming Oppy is healthy at the time, I see no reason why this would be as much as a 4 year trip. Given the new nav software, I could envision completing the traverse in a single driving season, as little as a year. To me, the journey to Ithaca seems to sanest option after Victoria. |
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