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Say Goodnight to NEAR
FortKnox writes "Space.com reports that NEAR is running out of light, and isn't expected on receiving any until November, and not having 'full light' until August 2002. They don't believe the innards will live that long. It's tough to see something that wonderful just die a slow death. It would have been grand to see them launch it and return it to put it in a museum. But, then again, some satellites live longer than expected..."
The importance of the NEAR mission was not its longevity, but its intial accomplishment. NASA was able to plan, launch, and navigate a satellite to a distant and fast-moving body. While this may not seem any different than landing on a planet, one must consider that an asteroid's course is less certain and less predicatble. More impressive than the intial navigation to the asteriod was the feat of landing on a rotating body of rock with unknown surface features. So while this may be the end of NEAR's mission, don't be glum about about the end. Rater, try to admire its accomplishments.
- It wasn't decided to land in the first place
- NASA didn't want to. They decided it would be better to keep it there and gather as much data as they could rather than try flying again which would do nothing for science (although a lot for publicity).
I am proud NASA made the right decision for once. Gathering data is much more valuable than putting junk into space.