My Assistant
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Landing Site |
Mar 3 2008, 10:03 PM
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#1
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Newbie ![]() Group: Members Posts: 9 Joined: 6-November 07 From: USA, MN Member No.: 3954 |
So has a landing site been chosen yet, anyone know? and what is the specific (or general) location... and don't just say "up north", latitude and longitude would be better.
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Mar 3 2008, 11:22 PM
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#2
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Founder ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Chairman Posts: 14457 Joined: 8-February 04 Member No.: 1 |
Well
"Latitude (centered): 68.2 ° Longitude (East): 233.2 °" From http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/PSP_007207_2485 - which is inside the ellipse. If you said 68 / 233 - you couldn't be considered wrong. http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/183675m...label-hires.jpg and http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.p...amp;#entry98551 for more. Doug |
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Mar 3 2008, 11:42 PM
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#3
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Newbie ![]() Group: Members Posts: 9 Joined: 6-November 07 From: USA, MN Member No.: 3954 |
Oh that answer my question, but it begets a new one: how big is the landing ellipses? isn't it suppose to be smaller then MERs? |
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Mar 4 2008, 12:16 AM
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#4
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Founder ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Chairman Posts: 14457 Joined: 8-February 04 Member No.: 1 |
MSL - with an actively guided entry will be smaller ( something like a 10km circle ) - but Phoenix is going to be basically the same as MER I would expect. Something like 80k x 20k - someone may be able to put my right on that though.
Dog |
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Mar 4 2008, 04:25 AM
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#5
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![]() Senior Member ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Members Posts: 3419 Joined: 9-February 04 From: Minneapolis, MN, USA Member No.: 15 |
So, are those frost-heave cracks that form the polygonal terrain really flat, or do they present a certain amount of vertical relief?
I feel like we're trying to blind-land this thing in a garden amongst hedgerows -- it's lovely if you land in the garden, but landing on a hedgerow could ruin your whole day... -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 4 2008, 05:31 AM
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#6
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Member ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Members Posts: 600 Joined: 26-August 05 Member No.: 476 |
Well, the description does say "shallow" troughs with CO2 frost. If all the frost has currently sublimated, then a new Hirise image would show the degree of shallowness.
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Mar 4 2008, 04:43 PM
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#7
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Solar System Cartographer ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Members Posts: 10265 Joined: 5-April 05 From: Canada Member No.: 227 |
To be more specific, the illustration with three ellipses shows target ellipses (roughly 100 by 20 km) for three launch dates. As Phoenix launched at the start of its launch period, only one of the three is the actual landing ellipse. It is the one running from lower right to upper left in that map. The ellipse reflects all uncertainties before launch. As they approach, the trajectory and timing will be known better, so the ellipse will shrink.
I had hoped for papers on the Phoenix site at LPSC next week, but there isn't much. Still, we should see an updated map soon. Phil -------------------- ... because the Solar System ain't gonna map itself.
Also to be found posting similar content on https://mastodon.social/@PhilStooke Maps for download (free PDF: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/comm...Cartography.pdf NOTE: everything created by me which I post on UMSF is considered to be in the public domain (NOT CC, public domain) |
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Mar 4 2008, 04:48 PM
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#8
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![]() Senior Member ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Members Posts: 2173 Joined: 28-December 04 From: Florida, USA Member No.: 132 |
Looking at the HiRise landing site images, I'm reminded
of a jigsaw puzzle with no picture on it. Even with one descent image provided by Phoenix and the capability of HiRise to resolve the lander, I imagine it will take quite a bit of searching before Phoenix's actual location on the surface is found. Am I being too pessimistic? |
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Mar 4 2008, 05:13 PM
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#9
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Solar System Cartographer ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Members Posts: 10265 Joined: 5-April 05 From: Canada Member No.: 227 |
A lot depends on whether any distant topography is visible. If any distant hills can be seen it will be found quite quickly.
Phil -------------------- ... because the Solar System ain't gonna map itself.
Also to be found posting similar content on https://mastodon.social/@PhilStooke Maps for download (free PDF: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/comm...Cartography.pdf NOTE: everything created by me which I post on UMSF is considered to be in the public domain (NOT CC, public domain) |
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Mar 4 2008, 05:40 PM
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#10
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Newbie ![]() Group: Members Posts: 9 Joined: 6-November 07 From: USA, MN Member No.: 3954 |
I thought Phoenix was going to test high precision landing before MSL? I know that ran some navigation test using the Martian moons with MRO, what became of that?
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Mar 4 2008, 06:15 PM
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#11
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Solar System Cartographer ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Members Posts: 10265 Joined: 5-April 05 From: Canada Member No.: 227 |
Those tests were not for Phoenix but for future use. They require a camera to be used during approach, imaging the moons so triangulation can give an accurate spacecraft position. Phoenix can't do that because it can't take images of the moons during approach.
Phil -------------------- ... because the Solar System ain't gonna map itself.
Also to be found posting similar content on https://mastodon.social/@PhilStooke Maps for download (free PDF: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/comm...Cartography.pdf NOTE: everything created by me which I post on UMSF is considered to be in the public domain (NOT CC, public domain) |
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Mar 4 2008, 06:44 PM
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#12
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Newbie ![]() Group: Members Posts: 9 Joined: 6-November 07 From: USA, MN Member No.: 3954 |
Ok, another question: how likely will it be that phoenix will land in the desired terrain (small boulders, crack surface, ice in range of arm, etc) in short what is the size of the optimal landing sites photographed in box A & D and how likely is it phoenix will land in that site?
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| Guest_Sunspot_* |
Mar 4 2008, 07:11 PM
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#13
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Guests |
I had a dream last night that Phoenix didn't make it down OK
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Mar 4 2008, 07:12 PM
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#14
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Senior Member ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Members Posts: 2558 Joined: 13-September 05 Member No.: 497 |
Even with one descent image provided by Phoenix... Zero descent images. MARDI operations were deleted from Phoenix. -------------------- Disclaimer: This post is based on public information only. Any opinions are my own.
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Mar 4 2008, 08:24 PM
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#15
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![]() Member ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Members Posts: 260 Joined: 23-January 05 From: Seattle, WA Member No.: 156 |
Has anyone managed to do any radar soundings of the landing ellipse? I recall reading descriptions of the MER landing sites based on (Arecibo?) radar results, and they proved to be very accurate (from my limited perspective, at least).
Is the Phoenix landing ellipse too far north for that sort of thing? Would the radars on MEX or MRO be useful? Or is that sort of thing entirely redundant given the resolution of HiRISE? |
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