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Mars Rover Ready for Risky Descent into Crater
Riding with Robots writes "After months of scoping out the terrain, the robotic geologist Opportunity is ready to drive down into Victoria Crater on the Meridiani Plains of Mars. Mission managers acknowledge the hardy rover may never come back out, but say they think the potential for discovery is worth it. 'The rover has operated more than 12 times longer than its originally intended 90 days. The scientific allure is the chance to examine and investigate the compositions and textures of exposed materials in the crater's depths for clues about ancient, wet environments. As the rover travels farther down the slope, it will be able to examine increasingly older rocks in the exposed walls of the crater. '"
I think it will survive it. Obviously that sucker was built Tonka tough lol. It's funny though cuz every time it's about to do just about anything, the scientists say "well this might be the last thing it ever does" just because it's way past the 90 days. It's kinda like how people every year say "yep, those AS400's are on their way out any day now" and then there I was, still sitting in front of an ugly green screen for one of my classes (I changed degree fields after that) I think the rover will be there long enough to bump into an astronaut's foot lol. Unless of course it gets attacked my martian crater monkeys. Those things are vicious.
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"the chance to examine and investigate the compositions and textures of exposed materials in the crater's depths for clues about ancient, wet environments."
Oh jeez... investigating and exploring the depths of ancient, wet environments?... This sounds like some kind of MILF joke gone wrong... *cringes*
You gotta love the creative genius of designing a mission that lasts 20 years and claiming that it will only last 90 days...
If they had said the rovers would last 20 years upfront, they never would have gotten funding for it.
How we know is more important than what we know.
Old martian crater,
Love her or hate her,
Waited for someone to come.
Before it's all over,
Rover comes over,
And crawls right into her bum.
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With my rover!
Mars Rover Beginning to Hate Mars.
-- If you try to fail and succeed, which have you done? - Uli's moose
Geeks have enough issues with social acceptance to begin with. We don't need your help.
Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
It's simple: drive on the slope until the crater is filled with blueberries, then you can easily get out.
True confidence comes not from realising you are as good as your peers, but that your peers are as bad as you are.
If it was a game, the latency would be around 600000. That's some bad lag.
Deus est fatalis
Red columns of dust, rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light
My wheels grew heavy and my camera grew dim
I had to stop for the night
(etc.)
You gotta love the creative genius of designing a mission that lasts 20 years and claiming that it will only last 90 days...
If they had said the rovers would last 20 years upfront, they never would have gotten funding for it.
Actually, it's only lasted this long because the little green men come out and fix it when noone's looking.Its wheels will just slip and slide.
NASA should have added a Confederate flag and a 01 decal. They'd have been able to get out of anywhere.