Looking at the Nasa Watch website http://www.nasawatch.com/, it mentions a flyby of Mars by Stardust .

Wonder if they'll do any imaging?

As a heads up to Bjorn - img2png doesnt like Stardust imagery - it just goes straight to a buffer overrun

Doug

The timeline on the website has an Earth Return date of Jan 15, 2006. That can't be correct can it? Mars to Earth in under 4 months?

It is reasonable. The V-Delta of Earth is higher than the ones of Mars. So the spaceship going to Earth is faster than to Mars since the Earth velocity around the sun is faster than Mars.

Rodolfo

Well, since it is flying by Mars it has a higher velocity than it would if it started from Mars (in which case the aphelion* would just barely touch Mars' orbit). So, I'd say yes, it is probably correct.

*Furthest distance from sun.

I don't think they will do any imagery. First off, with its stuck filter wheel and the equivalent of a wide angle Cassini camera, I don't think it would see much of scientific interest from a distance. But the stated reason that they passed up a few Annefrank-like flybys (and that I am guessing would apply here too) is that now that it has its samples, it is too risky to take chances with maneuvering it to aim cameras - it isn't worth taking any chances that could lead to the loss of the mission before earth arrival.

To take this slightly off topic, I noticed mention that the Aerogel used on stardust was also used on Pathfinder.

http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/tech/aerogel.html


Does anyone know why?

Yep - Insulation on Sojourner.

Link

The MER Warm Electronics Boxes (i.e. the bodies) are also packed with aerogel. Very good insulation!

Emily

Believe me, this Mars flyby is going to be VERY long range. That chart still allows it to occur at a distance of several million km, and I certainly have never heard a single peep suggesting that they had any observations planned at all.

ElkGroveDan: "The timeline on the website has an Earth Return date of Jan 15, 2006. That can't be correct can it? Mars to Earth in under 4 months? "

Yes. Mariners 6 and 7 made it to Mars in something like 5 months. They were "light" for the Atlas Centaur booster which one opposition later launched the much heavier Mariner 9 orbiter. The excess capacity was used to decrease time to Mars and get an encounter closer to Earth, aiding communications. The 2 vehicles got a mild gravity assist and aphelion was in or at the inner edge of the asteroid belt. Farthest from the sun of a solar powered spacecraft until relatively recently

After SD passes buy for delivery, what's next for this probe? Any more encounters?

I've read that it's basically going to be pretty much out of fuel, the camera's not too great, so it'll probably get switched off.

Doug

That's what Donald Brownlee told me several years ago -- unfortunately Stardust, unlike Deep Impact, doesn't have an extended warranty...

An update about stardust return :
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/research/...e/stardust.html

Another one about the opening of the sample canister :
http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/science/feature002.html

It is 46 days from now.

Rakhir

In the report, under the heading "Watching the Stardust re-entry", it states "Viewing will not be as good at sites east of Carlin where the craft will be seen from behind." I'm a little confused here. Don't they really mean sites to the west of Carlin?

Yet another tidbit from the COMPLEX meeting that isn't in my "Astronomy" article: Andy Dantzler insisted that they are "absolutely" certain from their review that Stardust's parachute switches do not share the fatal flaw of those in Genesis. One can hope that he knows what he's talking about.

Must be a typo, earlier in the article they state that the best viewing will be "From Carlin East into Utahhh...There is a natural warm spring lake on the Western edge of the UTTA (East of Carlin), an interesting place to dive in the middle of winter.

Thanks. I'll be checking the weather reports soon before January 15th, and heading out for Utah/Nevada if clear skies look promising.

Deep Impact showed Comet Tempel I to contain carbonate and clay remember:

Comet’s minerals hint at liquid water.
18:47 08 September 2005
NewScientist.com news service
"The comet crashed into by NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft on 4 July 2005 contains material apparently formed by liquid water and not ice, according to new observations with the Spitzer Space Telescope.
"This could suggests the disc of gas and dust from which the solar system formed got mixed together billions of years ago, whisking matter from warm regions near the Sun outward – or that an unknown process may allow a layer of liquid water to exist beneath the dusty coatings on comets.
"Spitzer was one of the 80 or so telescopes trained on Comet 9P/Tempel 1 when it rammed into the 370-kilogram copper-tipped impactor sent into its path. A spectrometer on the telescope detected a mix of materials as they streamed off the comet, including crystallised silicates, clay and carbonates."
http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=...line-news_rss20

http://datacore.sciflicks.com/the_andromed...n_damn_fool.wav

http://datacore.sciflicks.com/the_andromed...ld_fire_lab.wav

http://datacore.sciflicks.com/the_andromed...rain_spread.wav



- Bob Clark

The newly released and fact filled Stardust Sample Return Press Kit for Jan 2006 is here:

http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/139890main_stardust-return.pdf

John Bluck Jan. 4, 2006
NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.
Phone: (650) 604-5026/9000

MEDIA ADVISORY: 06-01AR

NASA AIRCRAFT CREW TO OBSERVE INCOMING STARDUST SAMPLE CAPSULE

A NASA DC-8 aircraft will carry a team of scientists to observe the Stardust sample capsule as it enters Earth's atmosphere and flies to a landing in the Utah desert at 2 a.m. PST on Jan.15, 2006. The capsule is carrying comet dust that the Stardust spacecraft captured near comet Wild-2 (VILT-TWO) in January 2004.

News media are invited to apply to be one of the journalists who will ride on the NASA DC-8 aircraft on the 'Stardust observation rehearsal flights," Wednesday, Jan 11 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. PST, and Thursday, Jan. 12, from 11:45 p.m. PST to Jan. 13, 3:30 a.m. PST. Journalists may also apply for one of a limited number of seats on the actual mission on Sunday, Jan. 15, 12:01 a.m. to 4 a.m. PST. Media tours of the aircraft will be offered on Wednesday, Jan. 11, from noon to 2 p.m. PST.

WHAT: Opportunity to fly aboard a NASA DC-8 aircraft to observe the Stardust space capsule as it enters Earth's atmosphere. For both flights, the DC-8 will depart from NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., and return there.

WHEN: A tour of the DC-8 will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 11, from noon to 2 p.m. PST. Written requests to fly must be received no later than Jan. 9, and emailed to jbluck@mail.arc.nasa.gov and mmewhinney@mail.arc.nasa.gov. Stardust observation rehearsal flights will be held on Wednesday, Jan 11 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. PST and Thursday, Jan. 12, from 11:45 p.m. to Jan. 13, 3:30 a.m. PST. The Stardust observation mission flight will take place the early morning of Sunday, Jan. 15, 2006. In your request, please note if your organization agrees to provide pool coverage, as seating is limited.

WHO: Interviews with NASA DC-8 mission project manager Dave Jordan, SETI Institute scientist and principal investigator Peter Jenniskens and other Stardust mission scientists and engineers.

WHERE: NASA Ames Research Center Hangar N-211. News media representatives who wish to attend the DC-8 tour should report to Ames' Visitor Badging Office, located at the Ames main gate. To reach Ames, take the Moffett Field exit off Highway 101 and drive east to the main gate and Visitor Badging Office. Special instructions will be issued to those journalists who are approved to fly on the DC-8.

JPL manages the Stardust mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, developed and operates the spacecraft. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology. NASA's Johnson Space Center contributed to Stardust payload development, and the Johnson Space Center will curate the sample and support analysis and sample allocation.

For more information about the Stardust mission, see:

http://reentry.arc.nasa.gov

http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov

RESEARCHERS AWAIT TREASURE FROM STARDUST'S EPIC JOURNEY
-------------------------------------------------------

Donald Brownlee's heart skipped a beat six years ago when the launch of
the Stardust spacecraft didn't happen as planned. The University of
Washington astronomy professor has experienced many other tense times
since the historic mission blasted off a day late, and its return to Earth
on Jan. 15 will be just one more white-knuckle moment.

http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0601/03stardust/

Stardust Mission website

Reentry conditions:

* Peak optical brightness: -7.8 magnitude (360-630 nm)
* Date: January 15, 2006 (night time)
* Time: nighttime (about 3:00 a.m. MDT, 2:00 a.m. PDT)
* Mass: 45.8 kg
* Diameter: 0.811 meter
* Speed: 12.9 km/s (at 135 km)
* Entry angle: 8 degrees
* Landing site: U.S. Air Force Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR)
* Heat-shield material: Phenol impregnated Carbon
* Sample return: comet P/Wild 2 dust

Sun and Moon (at Boise, Idaho - longitude W116.2, latitude N43.6):

Phase of the Moon on 15 January: waning gibbous with 98% of the Moon's visible disk illuminated. Full Moon on 14 January 2006 at 2:49 a.m. Mountain Standard Time.

* Begin civil twilight: 6:43 am. PDT (7:43 a.m Mountain Daylight Time)
* Sunrise: 7:15 a.m PDT, 8:15 a.m. MDT.
* Moonset: 8:27 a.m. PDT, 9:27 a.m. MDT
* Altitude of Moon at 2:00 a.m. PDT: 68.9 degrees.
* Azimuth of the Moon at 2:00 a.m. PDT: 190.8 degrees E of N.

drop test UTTR map

Little story: Stardust was launched on Feb. 7, 1999, and set off on three giant loops around the sun. It began collecting interstellar dust in 2000 and met Wild 2 (pronounced Vilt 2) on Jan. 2, 2004, when the spacecraft weathered a hailstorm of comet particles and snapped exceptional close-up photographs of the comet's surface. During its 4,608 billion-kilometers voyage Stardust made one pass by Earth to get a speed boost from the planet's gravity, and later staged a dress-rehearsal for the comet encounter when it maneuvered very close to Asteroid 5535 Annefrank.

The tensest moment other than the comet encounter came in November 2000, while the spacecraft was cruising along some 208 million kilometers from the sun (close to Mars -228 MK-). A huge solar flare, 100,000 times more energetic than usual, engulfed Stardust and its special digital cameras that help the spacecraft know where it is by viewing the stars and making comparisons with a comprehensive star chart stored in the onboard computer. The high-energy solar flare electrified pixels in the cameras, producing dots that the computer interpreted as stars. Suddenly the spacecraft did not know where it was and, in a preprogrammed act of self-preservation, it turned its solar panels toward the sun, losing communication with Earth.

Ground controllers finally found a faint signal and were able to contact Stardust and correct the problem. A little more than three years later the spacecraft finally met the target that scientists had been aiming for since 1974, when a close encounter with Jupiter altered Wild 2's orbit and brought it to the inner solar system. That made the mission feasible.

recopiled from the following URL: http://www.spacedaily.com/news/Stardust_Ne...ic_Journey.html

Hope the Stardust will came graceful to Earth after mastering its trip to space.

Rodolfo

Update:

http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/news/status/060105.html

OK I'm looking for advice here. I'm going to try to get a digital movie of this, as well as some stills to share with you all since I haven't had the time to participate here much beyond occasional jokes and wisecracks.

Do I stay here in Sacramento County where I'll see it at an elevation of 20 to 30 degrees depending on where I go for dark skies...or do I make the 2 hour drive in the middle of the night up I-5 to Mt. Shasta for a direct overhead view? Somewhere in between perhaps?

ElkGroveDan: I would like to hear from your experiences in Sitiu. Let share with us about your early morning trip. I hope you won't miss any Red Bull !

Rodolfo

FWIW - I look at the ISS whenever I can, and whilst a 90 degree elev gives the longest possible pass, it's awkward to look at. My favs are when the ISS passes at about 30 - 60 degrees, 45 being the sweet spot. It's a long pass, without being a neck-craner

Of course, something like 20 degrees is good if you have a clear horizon, as you can then do long-exposures that show the trail, with ground features to give a perspective to the whole thing. I'd say you're in a nice spot to get a nice view of it right where you are - just go and find some locally high ground if you can, with a clear nHorizon to the NW and NE so you can be sure to see as much of it as possible.

Doug

Good luck & clear skyes!!!

I don't care much for Red Bull, so perhaps I'll try a shot of Lipovitan D in my Starbucks coffee.

Be careful out there! And I think you will need a jacket...

I suppose it's also a matter of local meteorology - if you're statistically likely to be clouded out, then you may yet catch a glow through the clouds if you're right underneath. Equally, if you tend to get lanes of cloud, then if you're more distant then you're more likely to see something as the vehicle traverses various windows through the obscuring wet and foggy.

Good luck!


Bob Shaw

Thanks, I'll be several thousand feet below that level where it will be quite a bit warmer.

I think I'm going to take Doug's advice and find an open area where the 45 degree line crosses Interstate 5. It will allow me to better point my assorted cameras.

Good luck Dan.

I'm looking forward to your pics

James

Volunteers wanted:

http://stardustathome.ssl.berkeley.edu/index.html

http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.html

I'm having a go at that - HELL yes - chance to be co-author for resulting science papers is highly cool. I estimate it'll be 35,000 ish pictures between particles

Doug

Well, still be careful out there. ;-) These days, someone may think you are a national security risk....

I am so there!!!!!!!!!! I'll get my extra sharp eyes on:

Thanks for posting the link!

I am as well.
Actually, I already created a thread earlier about Stardust@Home.

Space Weather News for Jan. 11, 2006

http://spaceweather.com

FIREBALL ALERT: On Sunday morning, Jan. 15th, between approximately 1:56 and 1:59 a.m. PST (0956 - 0959 UT), a brilliant fireball will streak over northern California and Nevada. It's NASA's Stardust capsule, returning to Earth with samples of dust from Comet Wild 2. Observers along the flight path should have a marvelous view of this rare man-made meteor. Radio signals reflected from the capsule's ionized tail may be heard from a much wider area--hundreds to thousands of miles away.

Visit http://spaceweather.com for maps and observing tips.


INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION: The International Space Station is flying over the United States in mid-January during evening hours when it is easy to see.

Would you like a phone call to alert you when the station is about to appear over your home town? Sign up for SpaceWeather PHONE:

http://spaceweatherphone.com

Stardust Live from JPL : Webcam

http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/webcam.html

Rodolfo

I wonder if the Stardust@home has any audio background noise as you search.....Dust. Anybody? No?, Dust. Anybody? No?, Dust. Anybody? No?, Dust. Anybody? No?, Dust. Anybody? No? ...*clicks on dust particle* Dust is actually very low in fat, you can have as much dust as you like....Dust. Anybody? No?, Dust. Anybody? No?..............

LMFAO - I hadnt thought of Ms. Door's w.r.t Dust My cousin-in-law ( is there such a thing?) does a SUPERB "Dust? Anybody? No? Dust?"

Doug

I am sure there are a great many members here who will be totally unaware of "Little Britain".
If you are interested go to:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/littlebritain/.../marjorie.shtml

It's far too complicated for me to explain, and wouldn't be remotely funny.

Nick
(I want That one!)

Why is it when most British comedies get turned into American productions, they become awful?

Case in point: Couplings. Enjoyed the British version, hated the American interpretation, which thankfully was quickly cancelled. And the really bizarre
part? The first episode had virtually identical dialogue to its UK original.

What does this have to do with Stardust? Bloody 'eck if I know, guvner!

Hehe. "Red Dwarf" comes to mind as a similar example...

Comet dust brought back to Earth

Scientists around the world eagerly await the arrival of sample particles
from Comet Wild 2, which are being brought back to Earth by the US Stardust
spacecraft on 15 January this year.

http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Rosetta/SEM7G5MZCIE_0.html

Looks like weather is going to be problem for observers in much of Northern California. There is a window opening up Sunday. Crossing my fingers that it will migrate closer to the reentry time. No matter what, I'll still make the 2-hour drive to Redding, if for nothing more than 2 hours alone with a good cigar. I've learned over the years that you never know when the clouds will part. Also the sonic boom will be better up there.

LAUNCH ALERT

Brian Webb
Ventura County, California

E-mail: kd6nrp@earthlink.net

Web Site: http://www.spacearchive.info

2006 January 13 (Friday) 06:04 PST
----------------------------------------------------------------------

STARDUST REENTRY

NASA's Stardust sample return spacecraft returns to Earth early this
Sunday morning. Just before touchdown in Utah, the craft will reenter
the atmosphere at 01:57 PST and briefly become a manmade meteor.
Despite the presence of bright moonlight, the reentry is expected to
be visible over portions of California, Nevada, Oregon, and Idaho.

For information on reentry viewing and the Stardust mission, consult
the following sources:

http://reentry.arc.nasa.gov/index.html

http://reentry.arc.nasa.gov/viewingforum.html

http://www.spaceflightnow.com/stardust/status.html

http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.html

http://www.nasa.gov/stardust

If you see the reentry or obtain any high quality images of the event,
please forward your reports or photos to the editor at
kd6nrp@earthlink.net.

FYI:

NPR's Science Friday had a brief segment on Stardust & NH today, featuring interviews with Don Brownlee and Alan Stern respectively. Audio should be available for download later today.

There wasn't much time for either Don or Alan to get down into details, but it's nice to hear them get air time. Don noted that over 17,000 people have registered for Stardust@home to date.