Here's Looking At You, Kid, MGS Sees Mars Odyssey and Mars Express Options

[lyford]

Sweet!

http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/2005/05/19/index.html

[Bob Shaw]

I wonder whether MGS could image the derelicts orbiting Mars - even as streaks - despite their rather uncertain positions? Apart from the mere interest value in finding Mariner 9, say, it'd also sort out the issue of whether or not one of the MER vehicles saw either a defunct spacecraft or a meteor in the sky last year (I forget which one of the Rovers it was, but have a feeling it was Opportunity). It'd be nice to (1) find the old birds (2) backtrack their orbits (3) rule them in (or out) and get a final answer...

[garybeau]

I wonder whether MGS could image the derelicts orbiting Mars - even as streaks - despite their rather uncertain positions?  Apart from the mere interest value in finding Mariner 9, say, it'd also sort out the issue of whether or not one of the MER vehicles saw either a defunct spacecraft or a meteor in the sky last year (I forget which one of the Rovers it was, but have a feeling it was Opportunity). It'd be nice to (1) find the old birds (2) backtrack their orbits (3) rule them in (or out) and get a final answer...

I think the odds of MGS imaging one of the derelict spacecraft would be pretty remote at best. Not knowing the orbital elements of the spacecraft it would be like finding a needle in the haystack. I think the best chance would be to use the camera on one of the rovers pointed up at the sky in the plane of the last known orbit and keep taking a sequence of images until you catch a streak on a couple of sequential images. If you could repeat this on a couple of evenings / mornings you may have enough information to locate it with MGS. I have taken video of passing satellites here on earth just for the fun of it, and even knowing exactly what time they were going to rise, exactly in what part of the sky they will be and using a wide angle camera, it was still a tough catch.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y207/garybeau/iss4.gif

This is a highly compressed and shortened version of the ISS going by. Can you imagine trying to locate this from a moving target with a narrow angle camera?
I think for MGS to catch an image of Mars Express is a pretty remarkable feat.

Gary

[Bob Shaw]

It certainly wouldn't be *easy*, but the MGS guys have already done such surprising stuff with their almost vintage spacecraft that I'd be unwilling to call anything 'too difficult' where they're involved!

Detection of old orbiters from the ground would be aided by one or two Martian environmental advantages - no clouds (generally) and lovely dark skies (the nearest streetlights never get much closer than about 30 million miles!).

I too have attempted to capture satellites from the ground - the latest was the ISS cruising past Jupiter on 9 May. Sadly, I was caught by surprise and my camera tripod still had a little wobble, so it's not the best of photos.

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