Comments on: Mars Rover Will Try Daring Escape From Sand Trap of Doom

By: carmen

carmen — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:29:03 +0000

tell the l.g.m. to get out and push.

By: Ron Bennett

Ron Bennett — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 14:32:01 +0000

Here is a time lapse movie I made from the JPL raw images of how it got stuck:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4LjmE9rJ0I

Here is a newer one on how it got stuck in the sand trap that shows the robotic instrument arm moving around after it got stuck.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMbBgVqxXKA

By: Darren Garrison

Darren Garrison — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 04:30:53 +0000

There is a leaked schedule for the moves that they plan to attempt to dislodge the rover. Seems that first they are going to put the right wheel in, then they are going to put the right wheel out. Then they are going to put the right wheel in and shake it all about.

By: Justin

Justin — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 16:37:24 +0000

@#5 – 1 word, sir: Radiation. Until we can figure out a way to feasibly deal with that problem, humans will not get very far beyond our planet.

By: scribbler

scribbler — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 01:52:57 +0000

The atmosphere on Mars is so thin that the “wind” wouldn’t be much of a problem. It is still enough to allow a blimp type craft to drift about. It isn’t a bad idea, really, especially if the lift was achieved by heating gas. The energy to heat the gas would be easily available from solar panels and there would prolly even be enough left over to propel the craft against the thin Martian wind.

Personally, I think a blimp style craft would be a great idea with many otherwise unavailable options…

The biggest problem would be lift, seeing that the Martian atmosphere is so terribly thin. It would make the balloon portion extremely large. Still, it should be doable.

By: Kin

Kin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:30:18 +0000

Photon my first belief is that that design would have serious issues with temperature changes, as gas will expand/contract. (my first idea, there might be other issues, or it might be a great idea).

The other massive issue is winds. And how delicate the whole system in general would be..

By: Brian

Brian — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:26:12 +0000

Get Ken Mattingly on the phone!

By: Zachary

Zachary — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 20:33:37 +0000

They can also be there for five years…wait…

By: Roadtripper

Roadtripper — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:47:20 +0000

This is why you need a human-crewed mission to Mars. These rovers are great, but a human can do much more, without getting stuck in the sand, or taking an hour to get down the ramp when they land.

By: Glenn

Glenn — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 06:28:09 +0000

“decide whether it’s worth it to keep on trying” <– That can't be right.
Is their money and time that scarce?