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Perseverance Rover lands on Mars [video]

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Re: Perseverance Rover lands on Mars [video]

#131

Post by WJW »

tectonic wrote: post #14

You can also watch an EDL visualization in your browser: https://eyes.nasa.gov/apps/mars2020/#/home And read about how it will use Terrain Relative Navigation to find a safe landing spot: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/a-neil-armstrong-for-mars-land... Perseverance is phenomenally complex, its Sample Caching System alone contains 3,000+ parts and two robotic arms. So exited for all the sciencing this nuclear-powered,…

> is this what NASA calls 'weights'?

Well no, the Cruise Mass Balance Devices are intended to Balance the Mass of the spaceship during Cruise conditions. That these Devices are single-part and constructed out of a single chunk of metal each should not be construed as merely being 'weights'. :)

Re: Perseverance Rover lands on Mars [video]

#132

Post by spullara »

garden_hermit wrote: post #44

Watching these is always a stressful experience, I can't imagine what it would be like sitting in that room, praying that the object you spend years of work on is able to land by itself 7 light-minutes away. I'm looking forward to what Perseverance will teach us.

Right now it is 11 minutes away!

Re: Perseverance Rover lands on Mars [video]

#133

Post by bluescrn »

hedgehog wrote: post #122

I read that the design life of the helicopter is five flights. Does anyone know what the limiting factors are? The brutal cold and abrasive dust both seem like they could contribute but I am curious what the real answer is.

Dust on the solar panel seems likely to be a problem after the first landing, unless it's got a clever way to keep it clean.

And its got to be tough conditions for the battery, low temperatures and probably deep discharges to make the most of it.

Re: Perseverance Rover lands on Mars [video]

#134

Post by ALittleLight »

thelean12 wrote: post #98
ALittleLight wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

SpaceX hasn't been around as long as NASA. Also, remind me, did NASA develop reusable rockets?

> Also, remind me, did NASA develop reusable rockets? I can't tell if this is sarcasm or not but... yes, of course NASA developed reusable rockets. The space shuttle missions reused the shuttles and the boosters.

The space shuttle was partially reusable.

Re: Perseverance Rover lands on Mars [video]

#136

Post by Daho0n »

emilecantin wrote: post #75
raphaelj wrote: post #47

NASA's ability of succeeding at landing things successfully on the first try on foreign bodies since 1969 is mind-blowing. Meanwhile, SpaceX takes half a dozen tries before managing to do the same on a fully known environment on Earth.

Perseverance is one of the largest objects that NASA landed (along with the Apollo lander), and it's about the size of an SUV. SpaceX is trying to land things the size of buildings. Let's just say it's a very different problem.

.

Re: Perseverance Rover lands on Mars [video]

#137

Post by nerfhammer »

ehsankia wrote: post #100
smilespray wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's from a hazard camera, which is not used for main photography. Better images will come soon.

Worth noting that these first pictures are sent in the first seconds after touchdown, you can even still see the dust in the air from the landing (even if it was craned down to reduce dust). It also explains the very low resolution in general, they want to get confirmation ASAP, no time for high quality high resolution images.

would dust stay in the air longer or shorter than on Earth?

also is it technically correct to call the Martian atmosphere "air"?

Re: Perseverance Rover lands on Mars [video]

#138

Post by kibwen »

nelsonmandela wrote: post #117

Apparently the copter was made with off-the-shelf parts. I wonder if I can cop a replica somewhere, and how it would fly considering it is built for martian air

Here's a really excellent video that answers all your questions: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GhsZUZmJvaM

TL;DW: Martian atmosphere is so sparse that it's equivalent to flying at 100,000 feet on Earth. (The altitude record on Earth is 85,000 feet, set by the SR-71.) In order to fly at all the blades have to spin at nearly the (Martian) speed of sound. The drone wouldn't fly on Earth because the atmosphere is so dense that the blades would never make it up to speed.

Re: Perseverance Rover lands on Mars [video]

#139

Post by electriclove »

raphaelj wrote: post #47

NASA's ability of succeeding at landing things successfully on the first try on foreign bodies since 1969 is mind-blowing. Meanwhile, SpaceX takes half a dozen tries before managing to do the same on a fully known environment on Earth.

We really should take the SpaceX approach. There is too much at stake on a singular multi-billion dollar rover landing on Mars every now and then. We need more funding so that we can send these things to Mars much more frequently and get samples back before my kids have their own kids.
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