Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Mars Rover Spirit Still Alive

Posted by timothy on from the brief-flower's-bloom dept.

Toren Altair writes with this excerpt from a story at The Space Fellowship: "NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit communicated via the Mars Odyssey orbiter today right at the time when ground controllers had told it to, prompting shouts of 'She's talking!' among the rover team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. 'This means Spirit has not gone into a fault condition and is still being controlled by sequences we send from the ground,' said John Callas of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., project manager for Spirit and its twin, Opportunity."

35 of 185 comments (clear)

  1. This was a triumph! by White+Flame · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm making a note here:
    HUGE SUCCESS.

    1. Re:This was a triumph! by Sasayaki · · Score: 4, Funny

      It's hard to overstate my satisfaction.

      --
      Check out my sci-fi book "Lacuna" at http://goo.gl/MVxX8
    2. Re:This was a triumph! by ColdWetDog · · Score: 4, Funny

      "the baby is crying"

      (from someone at JPL)

      At least you're not completely emotionally invested in this thing. Seriously, when it 'dies', somebody is going to need some serious counseling.

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    3. Re:This was a triumph! by Cassius+Corodes · · Score: 3, Funny

      The poor lander all alone out there, a million miles away from home

      Now you made me all depressed. A rescue mission I say!

      --
      Control is an illusion, order our comforting lie. From chaos, through chaos, into chaos we fly
    4. Re:This was a triumph! by Tavor · · Score: 4, Funny

      And I don't even work at NASA.

      You're not smart. You're not a scientist. You're not a doctor. You're not even a full-time employee. Where did your life go so wrong?

      --
      Windows has detected an undetectable error.
    5. Re:This was a triumph! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      We're doing science and I'm
      STILL ALIVE

    6. Re:This was a triumph! by Ralith · · Score: 2, Funny

      Aperture Science
      We do what we must, because: we can.

    7. Re:This was a triumph! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      It's like having and raising a child. Except this one, at 15, doesn't live in your house and does what he's told.

    8. Re:This was a triumph! by n1ckml007 · · Score: 2, Funny

      look at me still talking when there's science to do!

  2. Everyone Dance! by compro01 · · Score: 5, Funny

    And we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive.
    Ah, ha, ha, ha,
    Stayin' alive.
    Stayin' alive.
    Ah, ha, ha, ha,
    Stayin' alive.

    --
    upon the advice of my lawyer, i have no sig at this time
    1. Re:Everyone Dance! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      I'm picturing a youtube video with rover edits, if only I was so inclined...

  3. They don't make 'em like that anymore by fortapocalypse · · Score: 4, Funny

    But I wish they did!

  4. Setup a status page by Bananatree3 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Abe Vigoda has one,why not the mars rovers?

    1. Re:Setup a status page by cheetham · · Score: 5, Funny

      There is even one for if the LHC has destroyed the world or not!

  5. NASA Automotives by supun · · Score: 5, Funny

    It rains and my stupid car won't start. Their little rover can travel to a different planet, survive the cold, survive dust storms, etc and keep going. Maybe instead of bailing out the "big three", we should dump all that money into NASA to make cars.

    I'm willing to risk my safety on a metric to standard conversion problem for a car that will run.

    --
    :w!
    1. Re:NASA Automotives by Dzimas · · Score: 4, Funny

      Sure! But be aware that your car will cost $243 million and travel at a maximum speed of 3 mph, while taking up three lanes with its enormous solar wings. Oh, and its only under warranty for three months because of concerns about the unpredictable Terran atmosphere.

    2. Re:NASA Automotives by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      By maintaining it do you mean traveling to mars every 20 miles for an oil change?

    3. Re:NASA Automotives by lysergic.acid · · Score: 4, Funny

      clearly he means that auto mechanics will be able to fix your car remotely from 35~250 million miles away regardless of where it breaks down. they can even get your car unstuck remotely if you ever get stuck in a ditch.

      suck on that OnStar! all they can do is unlock your car.

    4. Re:NASA Automotives by rampant+mac · · Score: 5, Funny

      "...and travel at a maximum speed of 3 mph, while taking up three lanes..."

      So, sort of like selling a Cadillac to a senior citizen?

      --
      I like big butts and I cannot lie.
    5. Re:NASA Automotives by Belial6 · · Score: 5, Funny

      That's not fair. OnStar can also route all audio from your car to any law enforcement group that wants to keep an eye on you!

    6. Re:NASA Automotives by lostmongoose · · Score: 3, Funny

      nah, old people only drive slow when they're in a hurry.

    7. Re:NASA Automotives by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Spirit has gone 4.8 miles so far, and Opportunity has gone 7.68 miles.

      +36 Million miles each if you count the commute to work.

    8. Re:NASA Automotives by smussman · · Score: 5, Funny

      nah, old people only drive slow when you're in a hurry.

      I think this is more accurate.

    9. Re:NASA Automotives by zbharucha · · Score: 2, Funny

      If you're satisfied with travelling a few meters everyday, go get your NASA car!

  6. I'm not dead! by SuperBanana · · Score: 4, Funny

    "I'm getting more charged...I think I'll go for a drive..."

    --
    Please help metamoderate.
    1. Re:I'm not dead! by SpaceLifeForm · · Score: 3, Funny

      Where do you want to go today?

      There is no Vista over there.

      Rovers - expected to die before Vista came out.
      Vista - not only late but dead before the rovers die.

      --
      You are being MICROattacked, from various angles, in a SOFT manner.
  7. Bring out your rovers! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    I'm not dead yet.....

  8. Re:3 Mars Rovers by Dogun · · Score: 2, Funny

    that was supposed to be a <3.

  9. Re:Ummm by Kell+Bengal · · Score: 5, Funny

    It's doing science and it's still alive.

    --
    Scientists point out problems, engineers fix them
    altslashdot.org: The future of slashdot.
  10. Not dead yet by kingramon0 · · Score: 3, Funny

    I guess it was just a flesh wound.

    1. Re:Not dead yet by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Alas, nobody actually reads "the article" or "the comments".

  11. It is not Mars Rovers by pirot · · Score: 1, Funny

    Martians are sending the signals!

    1. Re:It is not Mars Rovers by coxymla · · Score: 5, Funny

      Can't be, the chances of anything like that coming from Mars are a million to one!

  12. Re:Ummm by K.+S.+Kyosuke · · Score: 3, Funny

    Which means it is neither pining for the chasmata nor is it pushing up the regolith...

    --
    Ezekiel 23:20
  13. Re:3 Mars Rovers by FireFury03 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Right, I get that. I just meant, you know. <3, as in an ascii heart.

    Looks like a pair of testicles to me...

    --
    http://blog.nexusuk.org