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Mars Odyssey Begins Overtime

Posted by timothy on from the time-and-a-half dept.

thhamm writes "NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter begins working overtime today after completing a prime mission that discovered vast supplies of frozen water, ran a safety check for future astronauts, and mapped surface textures and minerals all over Mars, among other feats. An extended Mission until 2006 has been approved, and I hope it will last that long, maybe doing more safety checks for astronauts :)"

21 of 122 comments (clear)

  1. Doom??? by elasticwings · · Score: 5, Funny

    Umm, isn't this the first step towards the Doom 3 premise? I mean do we really want to start exploring Mars? It'll just eventually lead up to colonization via the Union Aerospace Corporation. Please somebody think of the poor Doom space marine that will have to go through this.

    1. Re:Doom??? by wpanderson · · Score: 3, Funny

      I wouldn't worry about it - with the level of hardware on Mars Odyssey, they'll be lucky to get a Doom 3 framerate of anything more than 1fpd (frames per day). With the quality set low. At 640x480. And not moving.

      --
      neuro at well dot com (when I post, it's my opinions, no-one elses)
    2. Re:Doom??? by thhamm · · Score: 5, Funny

      "monsters? demons? what the hell are you talking about? we did the safety checks years ago with mars odyssey. its perfectly safe there!"

    3. Re:Doom??? by Nakkel · · Score: 3, Funny

      No worries mate, just press CTRL + ALT + ~ and type "God". That should ease the job a bit.

    4. Re:Doom??? by tomee · · Score: 4, Funny

      What do you mean "poor" space marine? Everyone is already training for that day using professional simulation software. We'll have no trouble finding a volunteer.

    5. Re:Doom??? by EpsCylonB · · Score: 2, Funny

      And think about the latency as well, it's a 20 minute round trip.

    6. Re:Doom??? by kfg · · Score: 3, Funny

      Mars Needs WomenH^H^H^H^H^Flashlight Batteries.

      KFG

    7. Re:Doom??? by drinkypoo · · Score: 4, Funny

      It's because the rovers run predominantly on solar power, and the monsters mostly come at night. Mostly...

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  2. /. now on Mars by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    And we are the only ones here... spooky.

  3. Unfortunately... by mikeophile · · Score: 4, Funny

    It will not be eligible for overtime pay.

  4. outsourcing! by rozz · · Score: 5, Funny
    NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter begins working overtime today

    sending overtime-work to Mars is the kind of outsourcing we all love

    --
    "There is nothing more frightful than ignorance in action." Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
  5. Odyssey Does Not Qualify For Overtime by bstarrfield · · Score: 5, Funny

    According to the newly revised FLSA, the Mars Odyssey would be considered a professional exempt robot, as it's carrying out highly technical, professional tasks. Don't be mean and get the little robot's hopes up!

    --
    /* Dang, I can't type that well. */
  6. Re:intermediaries for human travel. by Zen+Punk · · Score: 2, Funny
    but I think that with what resources we've been able to find Mars may be more viable for a station or colony than mars.

    I don't think I understand what you're trying to say here.

    --
    Sleep is futile.
  7. Re:Working Overtime? by TCaM · · Score: 4, Funny

    Sounds like the Scotty symdrome.

    --

    Scotty: Do ye mind a little advice? Starfleet captains are like children. They want everything right now, and they want it their way. But the secret is to give only what they need, not what they want!

    LaForge: Yeah, well I told the captain I'd have this analysis done in an hour.

    Scotty: And how long would it really take?

    LaForge: An hour!

    Scotty: Oh, ye didn't tell him how long it would really take, did ye?

    LaForge: Well, of course I did.

    Scotty: Oh, laddie, ye've got a lot to learn if ye want people to think of ye as a miracle worker!

  8. Patent pending.. by riqnevala · · Score: 4, Funny

    How long does it take for Microsoft to get all patent rights for interplanetary email?

    There is also a new Microsoft innovation, called MS Solar time, method for keeping track of time on different planets. It is based on the microsoft scheduler and the office assistant "Kenny the Galactic Clock".

    --
    love slashdot. populate it. use it. abuse it. hate it. kill it. miss it. stop following links, they only kill servers.
  9. Re:Wow must have been gone for a long time by TheCyko1 · · Score: 5, Funny

    You really missed out on some big news then. I guess i should also inform you about the alien machine discovered on mars near one of these vast supplies of frozen water and a life form that appears to be a woman with three tits.

    --
    This message was brought to you by the death of 30 brain cells.
  10. Water on Mars by vivia · · Score: 5, Funny

    http://libo.ru/ind/graf1/3086.jpg

    1. Re:Water on Mars by thhamm · · Score: 5, Funny

      In other news, NASA, in cooperation with the IBBA (International Beer Brewing Association [no link]), has announced an extensive mission, as early as 2010, to determine the usability of recently discovered martian water for on-site brewing. "this will greatly influence our decision to go there in the first place", spokesman says.

  11. What if Odyssey becomes sentient? by Peter+Cooper · · Score: 3, Funny

    A previous Slashdot story told us that Odyssey would be getting some new program featuring 'AI functions' so that it could do certain complex, but repetitive, tasks on its own without needing too much input.

    What would happen, however, it this made Odyssey sentient? Could it build more robots, develop further intelligence, and then end up populating all of Mars with robots? If this happened, we might be in trouble.

  12. Re:Astronauts on Mars with this evidence? by general_re · · Score: 2, Funny
    I am in hopes that we will send a private mission to mars and not have them return.

    Me too. "Captain Darl McBride" has a nice ring to it.

    Feel free to add suggestions for the remainder of the crew ;)

    --
    ABSURDITY, n.: A statement or belief manifestly inconsistent with one's own opinion.
  13. Surface textures by mr+breakfast · · Score: 5, Funny
    ... and mapped surface textures and minerals all over Mars...

    About time! for too long Mars has been a flat-shaded sphere.