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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.'"
Who knew being a rocket scientist was so tough.
Twin Mars rovers, Opportunity and Spirit landed on the Moon.
They instruments were installed correctly on Earth. It's the Martians that switched them as a prank. :-)
At least they landed 'em on the right planet.
OK, now what?
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.
This was a follow up mission to the Viking landers which found no signs of life on Earth.
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