My interest in aerospace engineering came about when I saw pictures taken from the Viking landers. It dawned on me that I was looking at another world, a world that was not Earth, a world outside of our own, a TRULY ALIEN world. The word 'alien' was the strongest component of this fascinating experience. I must say that the super low resolution of the Titan pictures has been underwhelming but it is still amazing. I hope these weren't all of the pictures.
It can be so hard to get slashdotters to congratulate and honor people/entities/organizations who are doing neat things. For an amateur effort this is very impressive. You guys outdid yourselves. It shows how advanced we are when autonomous gliders are being created in backyards. Way to go!
This mission bears a striking resemblance to the unsuccessful 1998 Mars Polar Lander. The Scout program is designed to identify and choose the most promising mission ideas. I am assuming that it was coincidence that the winner was a mirror to NASA's very own MPL. I'd like to think there were no other ideas (Mars Glider, etc) that should have won but didn't because this mission resembled NASA's baby.
Unlike Mars the surface of Titan has not been mapped. The portion of the surface that was revealed is less than 1% and Titan has probably 1/2 of Earth land surface area (33million square miles). Any probe that we send to the surface is flying blind just as Huygens did. When we descended we did not know what surface features we were going to discover. Unless radar and ground telescopes technologies advances enough so that we could "pick" a landing site for the next lander/rover we can only hope that the terrain is navigable.
I also hope we return to Titan in the next 50 years.
than Titan where we haven't gone and Io comes to mind. I have been truly pleased by the tantalizing pictures that have come from the Huygens probe. What a fascinating place Titan is. Landing near a volcano on Io would be the only mission that could surpass this one! *hint hint*
It is possible that when Cassini is in position to speak to Huygens the lander will still be operational? Is the lifetime of the lander a function of the surface temperature or the belief that it might land in liquid? My guess is the latter.
The subject line is essentially my entire question:
Will we attain the data that is streaming out from Huygens while the orbiter is outside of the line of sight?!
taken methinks. Even at roughly 300 miles the comet is still moving very fast relative to the mothership who will be snapping away. I am afraid of just getting blurred images sent back or worse no good close-ups at all since the comet could be out of view by the time the camera starts snapping. We're talking 23,000 mph!!
YOU go up on Capitol Hill and make the case for transferring money to a space project of your choice. If you can make the case that taxpayer $$ is better served funding your dream then it will happen.
Tall mountain ridges of this magnitude would be surprising on planets like Venus and Earth because of the high gravity. Not on small bodies like Iapetus.
Now if there IS tectonic (could explain the dark debris in the northern hemisphere as well as the ridge) activity then one theorize that the belt is rotating in some fashion.
"The flyby images, which revealed a region of Iapetus never before seen, show feathery-looking black streaks at the boundary between dark and bright hemispheres that indicate dark material has fallen onto Iapetus. Opinions differ as to whether this dark material originated from within or outside Iapetus."
It appears as if Iapetus' leading edge is becoming covered with material from its sister moons as well as the rings of Saturn.
It's called 'lowering expectations'.
JPL Standard Operating Procedures:
1. Tell the taxpayers that the rover is designed for only X months of service when you and the designers know that it can last much longer.
2. Express surprise and delight when the machine accomplishes what it was supposed to do...last longer than the aforementioned X months.
3. ????
4. Increased appropriations
Isn't the new Space transport (CEV) due to begin flying trials sometime late in 2005? If we can complete testing by 2006 perhaps we can allay some of the costs incurred by paying the Russians.
No, the windchill factor is a psychological phenomenon known to man. The effect of wind on the body's perception of temperature is intangible yet shared by all human beings. Pretty interesting stuff.
No, the windchill factor is a unique phenomenon known to man. The effect of wind on the body's perception of temperature is intangible yet shared by all human beings. Pretty interesting stuff.
Slashdot Mirror
My interest in aerospace engineering came about when I saw pictures taken from the Viking landers. It dawned on me that I was looking at another world, a world that was not Earth, a world outside of our own, a TRULY ALIEN world. The word 'alien' was the strongest component of this fascinating experience. I must say that the super low resolution of the Titan pictures has been underwhelming but it is still amazing. I hope these weren't all of the pictures.
It can be so hard to get slashdotters to congratulate and honor people/entities/organizations who are doing neat things. For an amateur effort this is very impressive. You guys outdid yourselves. It shows how advanced we are when autonomous gliders are being created in backyards. Way to go!
This mission bears a striking resemblance to the unsuccessful 1998 Mars Polar Lander. The Scout program is designed to identify and choose the most promising mission ideas. I am assuming that it was coincidence that the winner was a mirror to NASA's very own MPL. I'd like to think there were no other ideas (Mars Glider, etc) that should have won but didn't because this mission resembled NASA's baby.
Unlike Mars the surface of Titan has not been mapped. The portion of the surface that was revealed is less than 1% and Titan has probably 1/2 of Earth land surface area (33million square miles). Any probe that we send to the surface is flying blind just as Huygens did. When we descended we did not know what surface features we were going to discover. Unless radar and ground telescopes technologies advances enough so that we could "pick" a landing site for the next lander/rover we can only hope that the terrain is navigable. I also hope we return to Titan in the next 50 years.
than Titan where we haven't gone and Io comes to mind. I have been truly pleased by the tantalizing pictures that have come from the Huygens probe. What a fascinating place Titan is. Landing near a volcano on Io would be the only mission that could surpass this one! *hint hint*
It sounds like a billion crickets chirping at once!! A function of the density, pressure, temperature. Truly exotic. Sounds of Titan
It is possible that when Cassini is in position to speak to Huygens the lander will still be operational? Is the lifetime of the lander a function of the surface temperature or the belief that it might land in liquid? My guess is the latter.
The subject line is essentially my entire question: Will we attain the data that is streaming out from Huygens while the orbiter is outside of the line of sight?!
We might find that the atmosphere extends from the surface on upward?!
taken methinks. Even at roughly 300 miles the comet is still moving very fast relative to the mothership who will be snapping away. I am afraid of just getting blurred images sent back or worse no good close-ups at all since the comet could be out of view by the time the camera starts snapping. We're talking 23,000 mph!!
YOU go up on Capitol Hill and make the case for transferring money to a space project of your choice. If you can make the case that taxpayer $$ is better served funding your dream then it will happen.
Tall mountain ridges of this magnitude would be surprising on planets like Venus and Earth because of the high gravity. Not on small bodies like Iapetus.
Another source of inspiration.
Now if there IS tectonic (could explain the dark debris in the northern hemisphere as well as the ridge) activity then one theorize that the belt is rotating in some fashion.
"The flyby images, which revealed a region of Iapetus never before seen, show feathery-looking black streaks at the boundary between dark and bright hemispheres that indicate dark material has fallen onto Iapetus. Opinions differ as to whether this dark material originated from within or outside Iapetus." It appears as if Iapetus' leading edge is becoming covered with material from its sister moons as well as the rings of Saturn.
Tidal forces could be wrenching the moon in half.
I doubt if the moon at one time split and just happened to re-assemble exactly where it split.
I wonder if they will feature the card playing smoking dogs...
Condor is largest bird of prey! Yes, they're scavengers but they can take down rodents and other birds!
It's called 'lowering expectations'. JPL Standard Operating Procedures: 1. Tell the taxpayers that the rover is designed for only X months of service when you and the designers know that it can last much longer. 2. Express surprise and delight when the machine accomplishes what it was supposed to do...last longer than the aforementioned X months. 3. ???? 4. Increased appropriations
I cannot wait for the view from atop the Columbia Hills.
Michael A'Hearn is a very nice guy.
It turns out that he never finished his PhD. What is it with college dropouts and success!?
Isn't the new Space transport (CEV) due to begin flying trials sometime late in 2005? If we can complete testing by 2006 perhaps we can allay some of the costs incurred by paying the Russians.
No, the windchill factor is a psychological phenomenon known to man. The effect of wind on the body's perception of temperature is intangible yet shared by all human beings. Pretty interesting stuff.
No, the windchill factor is a unique phenomenon known to man. The effect of wind on the body's perception of temperature is intangible yet shared by all human beings. Pretty interesting stuff.