Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

NASA Testing Lunar Rovers In Moses Lake, WA

Posted by timothy on from the bring-me-my-chariot dept.

deadaluspark writes "I work at a local news station, and found out NASA was testing their lunar rovers in a nearby city. I pulled some strings and got our news director to send out one of our reporters. I would link to the original video on the KVEW website, but the video is screwing up on the badly designed, WMP only website. So I uploaded the package to youtube for everyone on Slashdot to enjoy. Very cool video of NASA toys in action." Don't believe anyone who says it always rains in Washington.

12 of 116 comments (clear)

  1. Rain in WA by treeves · · Score: 5, Informative

    When someone says it always rains in Washington (1) they're exaggerating. a bit. (2) they mean WESTERN Washington. Moses Lake is in Eastern Washington.

    --
    ...the future crusty old bastards are already drinking the Kool-Aid.
    1. Re:Rain in WA by Dutch+Gun · · Score: 4, Funny

      it is absolutely not eastern washington Sorry, but if it's east of the Cascades, then it's "Eastern Washington" (at least to those of us on the wet side of the state). ;-)

      Anyways, pretty cool to see where I grew up getting into the news. Well, the last time my home town (Mount Vernon, WA) was in the national news was because some whack-job took off all his clothes, ran out onto the freeway, and climbed up onto a semi-truck that had stopped because of him. This is decidedly cooler than that.
      --
      Irony: Agile development has too much intertia to be abandoned now.
    2. Re:Rain in WA by mark_hill97 · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Sorry, but if it's east of the Cascades, then it's "Eastern Washington" (at least to those of us on the wet side of the state). ;-)
      except eastern washington, the areas around spokeane and such are all green, central washington is fucking barren and hilly, its no wonder NASA is out there, its the closest thing we have on earth to the moon.
  2. The rovers were bad! by mseidl · · Score: 4, Funny

    You should have seen the rovers during spring break.

    I think NASA went over board with the number of probes installed on the rover.

    1. Re:The rovers were bad! by owlnation · · Score: 5, Funny

      I think NASA went over board with the number of probes installed on the rover.
      What? No Harpoons? How will they hunt whales?
    2. Re:The rovers were bad! by Nethead · · Score: 4, Funny

      That was a joke son.. pulling your leg. Maybe this will work for you: "he he, he said probe."

      --
      -- I have a private email server in my basement.
  3. Color scheme by Xzzy · · Score: 5, Interesting

    What amuses me is how closely the NASA's color scheme matches the LEGO mars mission color scheme. ;)

    http://shop.lego.com/Product/?p=7690

    Which came first I wonder?

    1. Re:Color scheme by Carnildo · · Score: 4, Informative

      Which came first I wonder?


      NASA. They've been using the white (standard reflective paint), black (heat shields) and gold (reflective gold foil) color scheme since the beginning.
      --
      "They redundantly repeated themselves over and over again incessantly without end ad infinitum" -- ibid.
  4. Moses Lake by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Yes. Seattle is in Western Washington. If you drive East from Seattle until you cross over the Cascade Mountains, you find yourself in very different weather: dry and hot in the summer. One time I passed through Moses Lake in August, and the temperature was over 100 degrees F (Seattle was more like 75 or 80 degrees F, IIRC).

    Moses Lake is in the dry part of the state, and there is a decent airport there, so that's probably why NASA is testing there. Yakima would also be a good choice.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moses_Lake,_Washington

    Weather data here:

    http://www.wunderground.com/US/WA/Moses_Lake.html

    Right now it's 77 degrees F in Moses Lake, while it is 63 F in Seattle. (The whole month has been cold and wet. People are calling it "June-uary".)

    As for the famous rain in Seattle, it is indeed exaggerated. But we really do get about nine months out of the year with slate grey overcast; heavy clouds block out the sun. I don't mind; I'm happiest in a dark office writing software. But some people get "Seasonal Affective Disorder" (SAD) from the months of bleak darkness. It sure makes you appreciate the other 3 months, though. And you can always drive over to Eastern Washington for some sun.

  5. Velocity by je+ne+sais+quoi · · Score: 4, Interesting

    According to Wikipedia, the original lunar rover did about 8 mph. I don't think they mentioned in the video how fast the chariot goes, but it looked pretty slow compared to the rate people were walking next to it. Wouldn't that kind of limit the range they could cover in some practical amount of time? Unless they're planning on outfitting that thing as the lunar equivalent of an RV. Or maybe this is just because it's the prototype and the real one will be faster.

    --
    Gentlemen! You can't fight in here, this is the war room!
    1. Re:Velocity by rcamans · · Score: 5, Insightful

      On the moon, fast is dangerous. There is not much gravity holding you down, so if you speed up a dune, you go sailing off into space for a while. While you are off the ground, you are not in control of your movement, or your landing. So slow is the way to go. Great bounding leaps look cool in videos, but they are a great "here's your sign, stupid".

      --
      wake up and hold your nose
  6. Ooooh. by CopaceticOpus · · Score: 4, Funny

    I would link to the original video on the KVEW website [CC], but the video is screwing up on the badly designed, WMP only website.
    So, what are your plans after you get fired?