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20 Comments
- DonSchenck, on 10/12/2007, -0/+12The unexpected longetivity of this project is fantastic. What a great tribute to engineering. It's very exciting.
- JQP123, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8And what a bargain, the total cost of this mission is comparable to one space shuttle flight. We could be doing hundreds of these missions on different planets if NASA wasn't burdened with the exorbitant cost of manned space flight.
- rodrigo74, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7"Of course, if we had sent people to Mars, they could have collected the same (and much more) data in a day or two"
You didn't care to check the amount of data that was collected by the rovers in these 3 years, did you? :) - GrayV, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7Agreed - the guys who work and worked on the project must be very proud of their achievement. Those images are staggering.
- 1024k, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7You might also want to check out this spherical version of the panorama:
http://www.fotoausflug.de/mars.html
http://digg.com/space/The_3_Things_Everyone_Wants_To_Do_On_Mars - shaggtastic, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5There are occasional windstorms that have cleared the solar panels in the past (an unexpected but happy occurrence, from what I read).
- Bobski, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5I'll tell ya, anybody who hasn't picked up a pair of 3D glasses to view the stereo images are really missing out!
- jambox, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4yeah but you can;t send men to mars. it's a total folly.
Also, jqp123 meant the cost of sending the space shuttle into orbit - sending a vessel to mars would cost a staggering amount, even if it were possible. - danamania, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Another odd way of looking at mars is having the ground somewhat colour-corrected for a more earthly look, including a bit of distance haze and clouds.
http://www.danamania.com/temp/mars2106.jpg
Post-terraforming, perhaps? - richard67, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Look at the amount of dust covering the solar panels in this picture. How much longer can it go on before it doesn't produce enough power?
- rmmcclay, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Where's the little robotic arm which holds a brush to sweep the dust off the panels ? =)
The panorama is fantastic. Here's some more:
http://www.astrosurf.com/merimages/Images_de_spirit-2006.html - radu79, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3You can't send people before you send probes.
The unmaned probes are vital, because they collect all kind of information such as the soil composition, if there is water or not, wind speeds, etc. - shaggtastic, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3We need to mass produce these suckers. Refine the design, lower the cost, send dozens of 'em up there.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Happy birthday (I guess) to Spirit & Opportunity!
- xelloss, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Heres the 26 MB full rez pic
http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/jpeg/PIA01907.jpg - sorbix, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I animated the stereo view image into a 3d looking image:
http://digg.com/space/3d_Mars_Panorama_Using_gif_animation_technique - Nicodascorpio, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Is that .... a footprint in the soil on the lower left? AHA!!! Shenanigans!!!
J/K ;) - neuropsychguy, on 10/12/2007, -5/+5Of course, if we had sent people to Mars, they could have collected the same (and much more) data in a day or two. I think it's great that the rovers are there and have worked so well for so long but they can't do many things people can like think and reason and move more quickly.
- zydeco, on 10/12/2007, -4/+3We all might be happy, but Spirit sure isn't:
http://www.theonion.com/content/node/54360
"Hopefully these malfunctions will straighten themselves out," Callas said. "In the meantime, we'll simply have to try to glean what usable data we can from 'OVERPRICED SPACE-ROOMBA AWAITING MORE ***** ORDERS.'" - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -8/+0It's over NINE THOUSAND!!!
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