Spirit cleaner? |
Spirit cleaner? |
Jun 18 2007, 06:44 AM
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#1
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 1887 Joined: 20-November 04 From: Iowa Member No.: 110 |
I've been keeping an eye on the sundial images looking for signs of a cleaning event. I've noticed some changes in the latest to be downloaded although they may be due to changes in the lighting.
A : clean patch at top of circle streak at bottom B : increased contrast from dust left behind next to mirror C : clean patch next to wire Also note the missing clumps of dust on the deck A broader view show a contrast between sol 1221 and 1227 http://207.7.139.5/mars/spirit/navcam/2007...I4P0165L0M1.JPG http://207.7.139.5/mars/spirit/navcam/2007...00P1914L0M1.JPG Has anyone heard if there has been a change in the power levels? |
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Jun 18 2007, 09:06 AM
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#2
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Member Group: Members Posts: 470 Joined: 24-March 04 From: Finland Member No.: 63 |
The lighting would appear to be almost exactly the same, as the shadow positions are almost exact.
I think you are correct about the changes you point out. I imagine the overall cleaning effect would be small, though. -------------------- Antti Kuosmanen
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Jun 18 2007, 11:42 AM
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#3
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Member Group: Members Posts: 191 Joined: 20-November 06 From: Saint Louis Member No.: 1376 |
Just saw the latest images and rushed here to find out what more knowledgeable people were saying about it. But my impression was also that she's had a cleaning event.
-------------------- - Matt
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Jun 18 2007, 03:33 PM
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#4
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 2173 Joined: 28-December 04 From: Florida, USA Member No.: 132 |
The definitive answer would come in the form of a boost in power.... waiting... hoping...
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Jun 19 2007, 03:50 AM
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#5
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 4256 Joined: 17-January 05 Member No.: 152 |
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Jun 19 2007, 04:11 AM
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#6
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3419 Joined: 9-February 04 From: Minneapolis, MN, USA Member No.: 15 |
When you look at the rocks in specific and the surface in general, it sort of makes sense that an object like a MER would get wind-cleaned several times over the course of a Martian year.
If there was nothing happening on this surface except steady dust accumulation, the local surface would be buried in millions of years' worth of dustfall. The winds have to be capable of moving the dust along, or else the rocks would have dust caps and be buried in airfall dust. The fact that the rocks are not generally dust-covered (and are in fact aeolian-sculpted) and the soil is not completely covered with airfall dust argues for enough wind to blow the dust off the rocks at a greater rate than the dust falls out of the air. Of course, no one could have known if the periodicity of deposition/deflation events would be timed well enough to keep a solar powered rover working over a long haul. And extreme dustfall events, like global dust storms, would still probably doom a MER. But, on average, what we observe on the scene suggests an environment where solar panels will be cleaned just slightly more than they will be dirtied. If you want more proof of this general charateristic of Mars, look at the HiRISE images of the Vikings. They retain some of their blue-white coloration to this day, which means they have been cleaned more than they have been dirtied. It's only a gross confirmation, but it suggests that objects on Mars won't become (or remain) completely dust-covered on the scale of decades to centuries. -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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Jun 19 2007, 04:12 AM
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#7
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Senior Member Group: Moderator Posts: 3431 Joined: 11-August 04 From: USA Member No.: 98 |
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Jun 19 2007, 04:13 AM
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#8
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3419 Joined: 9-February 04 From: Minneapolis, MN, USA Member No.: 15 |
Oh, yes, and I forgot to add: Above 600 Whr!!!! Hallelujah!!!!!!
-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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Jun 19 2007, 04:33 AM
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#9
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Member Group: Admin Posts: 468 Joined: 11-February 04 From: USA Member No.: 21 |
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Jun 19 2007, 04:33 AM
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#10
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 2228 Joined: 1-December 04 From: Marble Falls, Texas, USA Member No.: 116 |
Alan: You're the man with the first good news in a long time. Congratulations.
I recently noticed some DDs apparently moving toward Spirit, which seems to be an unusual direction for them. Very good points, O'Doug. -------------------- ...Tom
I'm not a Space Fan, I'm a Space Exploration Enthusiast. |
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Jun 19 2007, 05:03 AM
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#11
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Member Group: Members Posts: 477 Joined: 2-March 05 Member No.: 180 |
Most excellent news.
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Jun 19 2007, 06:04 AM
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Senior Member Group: Admin Posts: 4763 Joined: 15-March 05 From: Glendale, AZ Member No.: 197 |
OK where's Helvick? We want to see that chart now!
-------------------- If Occam had heard my theory, things would be very different now.
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Jun 19 2007, 08:08 AM
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#13
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Founder Group: Chairman Posts: 14434 Joined: 8-February 04 Member No.: 1 |
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Jun 19 2007, 08:22 AM
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#14
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Member Group: Members Posts: 470 Joined: 24-March 04 From: Finland Member No.: 63 |
The solar cells looks patchy, like the wind cleaned some parts and left clumps of dust behind. This is in contrast to the overall hazy appearance of Spirit's deck previously.
Great news about the power levels! -------------------- Antti Kuosmanen
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Jun 19 2007, 08:41 AM
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#15
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Dublin Correspondent Group: Admin Posts: 1799 Joined: 28-March 05 From: Celbridge, Ireland Member No.: 220 |
We're well past the edge of my charts now and my extrapolations would appear to have been too conservative. I had thought she was at slightly below 400whr prior to this cleaning event but it appears that she was actually about 100whr higher. This is probably due to errors in the insolation\atmosphere model that I used (which is based on pre pathfinder data IIRC) and an over aggressive estimation of dust deposition.
I'll rebuild the chart and try to adjust for the errors to see what that produces. It will take a day or two though to dust them off, so to speak. Great news though - this gives her another respectable extension on her life expectancy. |
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