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Mars Rover Stuck in a Dune
Bamfarooni writes "The NASA Mars rover Opportunity has gotten stuck in a dune, buried up to the hubs of the wheels. While they haven't given up yet, it doesn't look good for the little guy who's now 359 days into the extended mission." From the article: "The Mars machinery had been cruising southward across the open parking lot-like landscape of Meridiani Planum, full of larger and larger ripples of soil. Opportunity has been en route to its next stopover, Erebus crater, nestled inside an even larger crater known as Terra Nova."
There's discussion on the Mars Rover Discussion Board and again. It seems careful Rover Watchers noticed that it hadn't moved in a few days, and started to wonder why. Apparently NASA had to say something, because people were asking questions.
I wonder if a passing dust devil, of the same sort that periodically clear the dust off the rover's solar panels, might be able to blow some of the sand away from the wheels?
It might take a while, but hey...
This space intentionally left blank.
My bet is that its grounded on the wreckage of Beagle II. :)
I was going to dismiss this out of hand, but FTA, Opportunity did find two small craters right before running aground. The cause?
They could have been created by an object from space that was large enough to make it through the martian atmosphere without burning up.
And, let's not forget:
"Given that these two craters haven't been covered by sand even though they are surrounded by sand ripples on a flat plain lends support to the idea that they're fairly recent."
Did someone say SUV?
y /mars_science_lab_040211.html
http://www.space.com/businesstechnology/technolog
I wouldn't worry too much about this one - the engineers are already using the engineering test rovers to test possible means of escape here on earth. The test rovers have proven invaluable in the past for modelling such complex situations (where computer models would be unlikely to be of much help).
The rover had made it many kilometers, I don't a little sand dune is going to stop it. All the scientists I've spoken to about this seemed optimistic (which was not how they felt about the spirit anomoly back in January 2004) so... I'm not worried just yet.
Does make for some very cool pictures though!
-- Justin
Wouldn't it be amazing if they both lasted long enough to eventually meet up somewhere? It'd probably take years but talk about publicity! Two robots designed for 90-day missions circumnavigating another planet! I wonder if it's even possible, given their design and Mars' terrain.
"I have never won a debate with an ignorant person." -Ali ibn Abi Talib
Or did they really expect the rover to last this long and simply said it was a 90 day mission in order to cover their tails?
Ding ding ding, we have a winner. All NASA probes are typically given a very short lifetime and very modest expectations, engineering them for much larger goals. Easier to request money from Congress that way, and also less of a PR disaster if something goes wrong.
Well, we now know that we need to drive carefully.
:p
The rovers are sun-powered, so the other rover can simply drive all the way after its done with examining its vicinity. We have the time, and the Little Green Men are already helping with dusting the solar panels
The creatures outside looked from Alt-Right to Antifa; but already it was impossible to say which was which.
If you get the momentum right, rocking back and forth will often "jump" you out of it as long as you haven't been a complete dummy and run full throttle digging yourself as deep as you an go...
Dunno why they don't just pull it out with the tractor beam from the other Rover, though.
Oh, wait... wrong reality...
to:
Draw your own conclusions.
Perhaps NASA could learn a thing or two from rednecks in 4x4 pickup trucks?
Yeah. Too bad they don't have any trains to race to the crossing with up there...
I'm guessing the first man on Mars will be someone from a culture that has no taboo against making a one-way trip.
-fb Everything not expressly forbidden is now mandatory.
It's also interesting to compare the above image with this one, taken Jan. 31, 2004 when the wheels were relatively clean an un-caked.
http://www.rootstrikers.org/
Not so much a matter of not slowing down, they don't allow more space between themselves and the next vehicle, even the knackerheads who cut in between cars with only a whisker to spare. Small wonder there's more accidents, there's less room for error and compensation.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Hilarious. You should do stand up.
Seriously, floormats are usually much more slippery because they're plastic. You'd be better off carrying a 5 pound bag of sand around in your car during the winter. I've seen people try the floormats and they make interesting projectiles. This is what a flying carpet would look like!
Letting air out of the tires doesn't work, period. It's like urban legend stuff. If you let too much air out of a tire then the snow bunches up under the middle of the tread which becomes convex.
Moderation is the trick, go easy instead of trying to spin out of deep ice or snow. Once you've broken the coefficient of friction you'll never get anywhere and just end up packing snow into ice and polishing it.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Being an avid 4x4'er and no stranger to getting stuck, the best suggestions are this:
1. Do *not* make things worse by spinning the wheels and digging yourself *in* further.
(You're not rushing so you know this already, but certainly don't spin the wheels)
2. Try to wiggle/dig *out* some clearance between your undercarriage and the sand. The more contact points you have the more friction you need to overcome. (After exhausting all options you may want to use the arms to remove as much sand from around the wheels and undercarriage as is possible. This may ruin the scientific instruments on those arms, but at least you'll better your chances of getting out.)
3. Straighten your wheels as much as possible, but also try to match the entrance route.
(noticed in the picture that one of the wheels is perpendicular to the track line, not a great way to get out.)
4. Use your highest gear and slowly without tire spin, REVERSE!
(It's usually best to go the route you came from, *not* visa versa because you've compacted the sand and you don't want to "plow" anymore)
5. If that is difficult, ROCK the house! Rocking back and forth to create a space to give momentum on the way out is a great way of "punching" through the hard spot. Again, the reverse route is usually the best choice to rock out of. Give one last good pendulum type run at it when you're ready to try to bust out. Rocking forward then at the pinnacle, rock with all you have backwards.
5. Use time to your advantage; keep working at it with the above. You don't want the sand to settle like cement though, so don't just sit there. Further those pesky dust devils may fill your tracks.
6. Perhaps you can use gravity to your advantage on a slope.
I'd wish you good luck, but there is no such thing as luck.
There's only statistically calculated coincidence.
So good "statistical calculating"!
The scientists were optimistic about that Spirit glitch, at least the ones with considerable past mission experience. It looked very strongly like a software problem from the start.
They're getting a service performed on their old car, not getting a new car. I don't know how California works it, but there's no tax on mechanic services in most states. If your restoration has the same VIN, it's the same car.
But they get more than just car parts. They sometimes get TVs, game systems, etc. added to the car. It's more than just service.
It significantly increases the complexity of the task, for certain. It's a lot easier just to let your engine corrode and crack from the exhaust stream, be embrittled by your fuel or oxidizer, have its joints weakened by the vibration, etc. Stopping this is difficult and costly.
On the other hand, if it's reusable, you only have to build it once, with is a huge advantage when you're dealing with something as expensive as a high performance rocket engine.
Dear Lord: One of your creatures may be hurt tonight. Please let it be the other creature.
bless the maker and his water, bless the coming and going of him, may his passing cleanse the world...