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Mars Rovers Have Incorrect Instruments Installed

Christopher Reimer writes "The New Scientist is reporting that the twin Mars rovers, Opportunity and Spirit, has instruments installed in the wrong rovers. From the article: 'While the bungle does not undermine the main scientific conclusions drawn from the data collected by the rovers, it is an embarrassing slip-up for a space agency that once lost a Mars spacecraft because engineers mixed up metric and imperial units.'"

19 of 294 comments (clear)

  1. Man by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Who knew being a rocket scientist was so tough.

    1. Re:Man by Mr.Progressive · · Score: 5, Funny

      More proof that NASA is filled with these guys.

      --
      Okay, so a philosopher, a philologist, and a philatelist walk into a bar...
  2. In Other News.... by TimeTraveler1884 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Twin Mars rovers, Opportunity and Spirit landed on the Moon.

  3. Puddnhead Wilson Goes to Mars by rkmath · · Score: 2, Funny

    Subject says it all - mod me down if you have never read Mark Twain :)

  4. nah... by Arctic+Dragon · · Score: 5, Funny

    They instruments were installed correctly on Earth. It's the Martians that switched them as a prank. :-)

  5. Re:I want to fight for NASA but come on... by zulux · · Score: 3, Funny

    How can i possibly advocate for a mars mission when they can't even get this shit right?


    How can I possibly listen to you when you cant even used the shift key properly.

    --

    Moneyed corporations, non-working 'poor' and criminal prisoners are turning productive citizens into tax-slaves.

  6. Cain't never tell them kids apart... by mactov · · Score: 5, Funny

    At least they landed 'em on the right planet.

    --
    OK, now what?
    1. Re:Cain't never tell them kids apart... by flyingsquid · · Score: 4, Funny
      At least they landed 'em on the right planet.

      Actually, one of the rovers just crested a hill and beamed back this photo of a sign that says "Death Valley 7-11"...

  7. In other news: by Viceice · · Score: 4, Funny

    A hermit writes: "The Church is reporting that the two human genders, male and female, have instruments installed in the wrong genders. From the article: 'While the bungle does not undermine the main reproductive conclusions from the reproductive activities between genders, it is an embarrassing slip-up for a supreme being that once lost a world of worshippers to a flood because the first prototypes mixed up good and evil.'"

    --
    Sometimes I wish I was a plumber, then I'd know how to deal with other people's shit.
  8. Re:If... by Fallingcow · · Score: 3, Funny

    No manufacturing can produce 2 identical things, just not possible since the two items could not share the same time and space in the universe together thus both are going to be slightly different.

    Oh, come on! It's easy!

    ln rover_1 rover_2

    See?

  9. Hit it! by dexter+riley · · Score: 3, Funny

    Because they're rovers,
    Identical rovers, you will find...
    They look alike, they rove alike,
    They even calibrate alike!
    (Should I put this alpha-particle X-ray spectrometer in you...or you? Whoooaaaa!)
    You will lose your mind!
    When rovers...are two of a kind!

    Identical Rovers! Tuesdays at 8 on SCTV!

  10. Re:If... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Damn your Dumb!

    'Nuff said.

  11. Re:Not wrong, but swapped by ScrewMaster · · Score: 3, Funny

    They are like The Register for computers and The National Inquirer for, uhm. WTF is The Inquirer about?

    For that matter, WTF is Slashdot about?

    --
    The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
  12. Two for two by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    This was a follow up mission to the Viking landers which found no signs of life on Earth.

  13. Re:If... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Damn your Dumb

    "you're".

    you get it setup

    "set up". ("setup" is a noun.)

    something that has deemed to be

    "has been deemed".

    Each one has it's own channel through it's own voltage modules

    "its" (both places).

    but there is about 4 closely similar calibrations

    "there are about".

  14. Re:Root Cause by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Its appropriate that someone with a Star Wars nick would mention this. Star Wars knows all about root causes: Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate ... leads to suffering.

  15. Could be worse by Cliff.Braun · · Score: 2, Funny

    You know, Compared to mixing up metric and imperial units, this seems downright intelligent of them.

  16. Oops. by ktakki · · Score: 4, Funny

    Okay, I was in the meeting where the difference in calibration was discussed, and I was the one that suggested that the instrument packages should be marked so that the right package would be installed in the right lander.

    I recommended that one package should be marked with an "O" for "Spirit" and the other with an "S" for "Opportunity". I even donated the Sharpie marker and masking tape for this purpose.

    It's not my fault that the implementation was screwed up. It's those numbnuts in the Vehicle Assembly Department who can't read a bloody memo.

    Fortunately, I've left NASA for a position at the Department of Defense. My team is tasked with identifying sites related to the constructon of weapons of mass destrucion in South Korea.

    k.

    --
    "In spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart." - Anne Frank
  17. I guess being... by Anita+Coney · · Score: 2, Funny

    ... a rocket scientist isn't what it used to be.

    --
    If someone says he and his monkey have nothing to hide, they almost certainly do.