Discovery 2012 |
Discovery 2012 |
Aug 20 2012, 07:15 PM
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#31
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Member Group: Members Posts: 540 Joined: 25-October 05 From: California Member No.: 535 |
If InSIGHT's selection is true, then I'm glad that JPL's EDL team will have a reason to eat peanuts again in 2016...though I REALLY wanted to see a spacecraft float in an extraterrestrial lake. Oh well.
-------------------- 2011 JPL Tweetup photos: http://www.rich-parno.com/aa_jpltweetup.html
http://human-spaceflight.blogspot.com |
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Aug 20 2012, 07:22 PM
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#32
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 1729 Joined: 3-August 06 From: 43° 35' 53" N 1° 26' 35" E Member No.: 1004 |
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Aug 20 2012, 08:04 PM
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#33
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Member Group: Members Posts: 242 Joined: 21-December 04 Member No.: 127 |
I think it is pretty tough to argue with this selection. It's an instrument package that we've needed to send for a long time and it's got a well-defined risk profile.
Additional Thoughts: I think this is a really important mission. Between it and Curiosity, we'll really be at an inflection point in Mars exploration strategy by 2018/20 or so, with prety good data confirming one of four big picture views of the planet: 1) Wet Mars and live internal heat/movement; 2) Wet Mars and no current internal heat/movement; 3) Dry Mars and live internal heat/movement; and 4) Dry Mars and no current internal heat/movement. The relative value of a major effort like MSR compared to other solar system exploration priorities really depends on which of these four broad stroke pictures ends up being closest to the truth. |
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Aug 20 2012, 08:47 PM
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#34
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Junior Member Group: Members Posts: 35 Joined: 28-September 05 From: Seattle, WA Member No.: 514 |
I have no reason to doubt that NASA made the right choice based on considerations of risk and scientific value. But I'd really been hoping that we'd get a glimpse of Titan's seas; I can't help feeling massively disappointed, even though InSight is an exciting mission. The long travel times and stubbornly slow orbital motions sure make it rough to be a fan of exploration of the Outer planets. And calculating my age at the time of the next opportunity for a TiME-like mission was the wrong approach to softening this blow...
--Chris |
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Aug 20 2012, 09:04 PM
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#35
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 1729 Joined: 3-August 06 From: 43° 35' 53" N 1° 26' 35" E Member No.: 1004 |
just wondering what science objectives can be accomplished by a single-spacecraft network. I understand that some data is better than no data at all, but still...
BTW with a bit of luck (and taxpayer money) there mayl be three new spacecraft on the surface of Mars in 2016: InSIGHT, the short-lived ExoMars EDL demonstrator and possibly also a similar Chinese craft (see http://www.stfc.ac.uk/RALSpace/resources/P...MarsProbes.pdf). And of course Curiosity (and why not Opportunity) will still be operational |
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Aug 20 2012, 09:25 PM
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#36
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Member Group: Members Posts: 293 Joined: 29-August 06 From: Columbia, MD Member No.: 1083 |
Hmm...sounds like confidence in cost estimates was a key factor in Insight's selection. Insight came in a bit below the cap.
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Aug 20 2012, 09:34 PM
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#37
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Member Group: Members Posts: 242 Joined: 21-December 04 Member No.: 127 |
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Aug 20 2012, 09:38 PM
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#38
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Merciless Robot Group: Admin Posts: 8783 Joined: 8-December 05 From: Los Angeles Member No.: 602 |
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Aug 20 2012, 11:48 PM
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#39
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 2073 Joined: 13-February 10 From: Ontario Member No.: 5221 |
My only wish is for color cameras; from the looks of this video they'll be essentially navcam/hazcam types, great for engineering but still black/white.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSTYvwodKO0...player_embedded Any idea for the landing site or when it will be selected? I'm assuming near a volcanic region... |
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Aug 20 2012, 11:59 PM
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#40
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Member Group: Members Posts: 706 Joined: 22-April 05 Member No.: 351 |
just wondering what science objectives can be accomplished by a single-spacecraft network. There's some information in this presentation from 2009. A presentation to the Decadal Survey Mars panel showed considerable work in trying to get the most from a single station. Unfortunately, the Decadal Survey link is gone, but I can send a copy to anyone who emails me. I wrote summaries of the tactics at my blog here and here. -------------------- |
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Aug 21 2012, 12:41 AM
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#41
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 2504 Joined: 13-September 05 Member No.: 497 |
My only wish is for color cameras... MSSS could provide a range of color cameras for very low mass. http://www.msss.com/space-cameras/ More information on request. -------------------- Disclaimer: This post is based on public information only. Any opinions are my own.
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Aug 21 2012, 12:49 AM
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#42
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 2073 Joined: 13-February 10 From: Ontario Member No.: 5221 |
That's assuming it's not too late to make a minor payload adjustment, is it? The payoff will certainly be worth it, even for a Phoenix-style landing site.
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Aug 21 2012, 12:56 AM
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#43
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Founder Group: Chairman Posts: 14431 Joined: 8-February 04 Member No.: 1 |
There's a pair of nearly finished MastCam's - one could find a lovely home on that arm. I really hope they can find the $ to do it.
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Aug 21 2012, 01:01 AM
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#44
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Administrator Group: Admin Posts: 5172 Joined: 4-August 05 From: Pasadena, CA, USA, Earth Member No.: 454 |
What kind of $ would it cost?
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Aug 21 2012, 01:08 AM
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#45
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Member Group: Members Posts: 706 Joined: 22-April 05 Member No.: 351 |
A MastCam is more affordable than my dream, flying Sojourner's twin rover which is somewhere in JPL storage. The original proposal for the never flown 2001 lander would have flown this rover on a Phoenix/Insight-class lander. Oh, well, Curiosity will likely still be roving in 2016 and who knows, Opportunity might still be plugging along.
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