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Amateur Mars Satellite
Hobbyspacer writes "The German AMSAT-DL
group recently announced
formal approval of the
Phase 5-A project to send a spacecraft to Mars in the
2007 or 2009 launch window. The spacecraft will use the
same structure as
AO-40 (formerly Phase 3-D) that was launched into earth orbit
in the fall of 2000. Like AO-40 the Mars probe will piggyback on
an Ariane 5 launch and use the same 400 N propulsion system. (I
expect they will solve the problem that caused the
engine misfiring
that nearly destroyed the spacecraft.) The Phase 3-E
project was also approved to follow up AO-40 and to test various techniques and technologies for the Mars mission. The document
P5A-to-Mars!(712k pdf)
describes the technical challenges and possible solutions for
such an ambitious mission. AO-40 cost several million dollars and the Mars probe should cost considerably more, requiring they obtain funds outside of AMSAT members and the ham radio community. The long list, though, of spectacular contributions made by AMSAT to the development of micro sats and space communications gives the program high credibility."
I think this is kind of a big leap from just a amateur rocket in space earlier this year. What happened to an actual geosynchronous satelite, a lunar probe, or even an amateur manned space shot? I think they should plan these first before they leap into such a project.
I'm the Devil the Windows users warned you about.
...with all those magnetic bacteria kicking around Mars these days :).
i want nothing more than an amatuer, grass-roots, half-assed spare time devotion created rocket to blast me away from this dirty goddamn planet full of hippies!
While all of these projects are cool, I wonder if the cheaper projects will have problems with lower standards of cleanliness and lead to contamination of Mars, possibly leading to the destruction of any curent life on Mars. After all Scientists have found that there was contamination on the first lunar lander that touched down on the Moon on 1967.
It took me three times, reading the summary to realize that they actually *are* planning a mission to the *planet* Mars, and that they are not putting up a bird to help out the Military Affiliate Radio System, aka MARS. It still makes more sense that it's a MARS bird - who'll be *on* Mars to use it? But there is (admittedly slight) a chance that this could prove useful here around Earth, if all Hades breaks loose with terrorists.
73 de NNN0WYZ
Lemon curry?
Yes, maybe they will all fork and independently only ever get half way to the destinations they intend to reach, there will be 32 year old bearded hippies leaving their parents basements all over the world to wind up floating eternally through space desperately trying to use the little time, bandwidth, caffeine, and cold pizza they have left to upload patches to sourceforge.
Saying Java is nice because it works on all OS's is like saying that anal sex is nice because it works on all genders.
I'd give the project lik $20 or so if they would place a BIG sign on mars, readable from orbit, that says:
<Power to The User>
Then again, they would probably misfire, and I would be out $20, unless they refund donations.
You can't judge a book by the way it wears its hair.
It's a good idea, and actually is close to the current state of affairs. The ESA has been collaborating closely with NASA and, surprisingly, with the Canadian space agency, mentioned in an earlier story. It's not going to be like a Beowulf cluster- more like a blogging community. Everybody links to and feeds off each other while providing unique content. Certainly it's more efficient than today's monolithic structure.
However, I don't see a lot of private capital entering the picture just yet, and I don't see a lot of cooperation betweeen the public and private sector for a while- at least in America. NASA still has some lessons to learn, and the private sector needs to get seriously involved. The ISS seems to be a significant reason for both the unification of involved public space agencies and the continued lack of participation of commercial agents.
Here's hoping that they don't mix up Kilometers with Miles.
Are you local? There's nothing for you here!
Amature brain surgery?
Table-ized A.I.
Heck, man! And here I was about to suggest that they shoot some bacteria and cold-tolerant lichens and moss spores up there -- intentionally!
I'm all for keeping natural environments untouched when there's a clear reason or there's something we're actually protecting...but what would you suggest is being damaged on the Moon or Mars? And, personally, I find the idea of "contaminating" Luna to be ludicrous. We're not talking intelligent life out there, nor are we talking about nutrient-rich environments. We're barely talking atmosphere. The moon (and, it seems, Mars) are about as close to the true definition of "wasteland" as you can get. And, if we kill off the native Martian unicellular organisms, so be it. I want that place to be well on its way to terraforming by the time I head up there with the first wave of manned flights.
Best way to get at that all that locked-up water and use that carbon dioxide atmosphere would be to send some tough bacteria, with some of your basic algaes and lichens to start putting down roots...
The Ariane series aren't German, but French launchers, though most european countries are funding them by now. They are based in Kourou, French Guyane.
Seems like there's a lot of misconceptions about what the word "amateur" means. Amateur radio is named for its non-commercial nature (amateur as opposed to professional), and has nothing to do with level of competence. There are a great number of amateur radio operators who are experts in their fields of endeavor, and can hardly be considered "amateur" in terms of competence. Here's a list of some of the more famous amateurs. I see a Nobel Prize winner in physics on there, which I'd hardly consider "amateur."
Mars... needs... women....
'nuff said.
73 DE KE6ISF
This sig no verb.
"CQ Mars...CQ Mars..."
"Mars is on the other side of the Sun, wait a few months"
"I'm working the bounce off Saturn."
"Oh. Any luck?"
"Won't know until morning. Light speed delay."
Um, the evaporation of the martian oceans? The elimination of almost all weather conducive to water based lifeforms be they carbon or otherwise?
An Education is the Font of All Liberty
There are also other national AMSAT organizations in countries around the world.
Who would use it? Amateur Radio operators have been doing satellite and "moonbounce" (using the Moon as a communications satellite by bouncing radio signals off it) communications for decades. It would be a whole new technical challenge to make contact via a satellite in Mars orbit. Not to mention the accomplishment of just getting a non-government spacecraft to Mars. The Physics to do this are well-known.
They'll undoubtedly also get some funding from universities who would like to put research payloads on the spacecraft. For example, AMSAT's P3D/AO-40 satellite carried a research payload from NASA (to map GPS reception from above the GPS satellites.) since it was going into a highly-elliptical "Molniya" orbit that NASA didn't have any birds in.
It is not a French launcher, it's a European Launcher. 30% of the parts are coming France and 30% from Germany.
The ham radio community should be pissed off about this use of funds. NASA needs fields of giant antennas to make out a signal from Mars. How is a ham radio operator going to see any benfit from this? Your suggestions would be much more practcal.
Have you considered the fact that "the roving prison" doesn't have to be on the equator? You should be ashamed :-)
If you nuke a polar cap with CO2, you could get more CO2 in the air. If you nuke a polar cap covered by lichens, you could end up with carbon dust on the poles and CO in the air.
Yes, but then again, NASA almost definitely did so as well with Viking, etc., so you can't really blame it on them being amateurs. Well, unless, that is, you think of NASA as amateurs.
-Karl
I'm well aware of both satellite and moonbounce. I used to do satellite, and after finding out that moonbounce took major power and a huge aluminum farm, to do CW at a pre-established time and frequency with somebody you knew ... well, to me it was mainly an exercise in futility. Why even try if you already know who you'll talk to, what you'll say and when you'll say it?
Somehow, talking via a satellite around Mars seems like that, cubed. Count me out. I was into this to learn electronics, and to meet new people, not to prove that I have the most disposable income.
Lemon curry?
Americans: You Invented Rap Music and Carjacking
Lars T.
To the guy who modded me down from perfect to terrible Karma - Apple haters still suck
Does this mean that the award cup on display
at ARRL HQ for the first QSO with mars will
finally be awarded to someone?
It's less stupid than its parent. Did you write that?
Lars T.
To the guy who modded me down from perfect to terrible Karma - Apple haters still suck
If indeed AMSAT does this, who will be the winner
of the Mars Cup [acutally, it is the Elser-Mathes
Cup]?
Actually heats up the race!
Konrad Zuse. Before the British heard of the Enigma.
Lars T.
To the guy who modded me down from perfect to terrible Karma - Apple haters still suck