Artist's impression of a rover on Mars. Spirit is stuck in a sand trap and may not be able to collect enough sunlight to remain viable.
Credit: NASA
WASHINGTON DC: NASA celebrated Mars rover Spirit's bountiful, six-year stint on the red planet on Sunday – way longer than its forecast three-month mission. But it all may soon come to an end, stuck as it is in Martian sand.
The tireless, 180-kilogram, six-wheel robot broke through a crusty surface layer to strike sand in April 2009. This was at one edge of the Troy crater, west of the Home Plate plateau, in the Martian southern hemisphere.
All attempts to extricate it have failed so far. The last time, in November, not only did the robot not budge from its place, but its right rear wheel broke down. Its right front wheel stopped working in 2006, probably due to a worn out electric motor.
Dead in its tracks
Dead in its tracks, Spirit cannot shake off the Martian dust that is slowly accumulating on its solar panels, preventing its batteries from recharging.
Unless the wind blows the dust away or, in a spurt of energy, Spirit can shift its inclination to better point the panels toward the Sun, "the amount of sunshine available will continue to decline until (the Martian solstice) May 2010," NASA said.
That means "Spirit may not have enough power to remain in operation" during the Martian winter, the space agency added. Despite its predicament, Spirit has been able to carry on its scientific work and has even made an unexpected discovery.
As its wheels spun and churned up the ground in its attempt to break free of the sand trap, it uncovered traces of sulfates underneath, scientist Ray Arvidson, of the Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, said last month.
New discovery
"Sulfates are minerals just beneath the surface that shout to us that they were formed in steam vents, since steam has sulfur in it. Steam is associated with hydrothermal activity – evidence of water-charged explosive volcanism. "Such areas could have once supported life," he said.
Spirit and its twin rover, Opportunity – which landed on the opposite side of Mars three weeks later than Spirit, on January 24, 2004 – have been given 90 more days of mission time. Scientists are not too confident, however, that the Martian wind will be able to dust off their power-generating solar panels.
Good moment for a blustery Martian afternoon...
Can we not hold out hope for one of those timely Martian windstorms to bleed away some of the obstructing sands? Well, if not, a remarkable run for "the little rover that could"
Rover
Needs a winch :-)
i knew i should've added the
i knew i should've added the grappling hook
4x4er
So they didn't consult 4wd enthusiasts prior to building rovers with wheels that didn't float on soft soils? How come they can't use the RAT arm to push themselves out? Much like how a backhoe can push it's self? Can it not crab it's wheels like it was turning to inch it's self like a articulated steering vehicle?
In terms of depending on climate to restore the batteries, this is very much like where I live. The communities essentially depend on global warming to restore the roads rather than take responsibility and clean them. Seems a lot of senseless accidents happen because of this lacking. If your ever considering moving to the Okotoks area, think twice. However, they are trying to be sustainable.
I'm sure they tried
I'm sure they tried everything possible...
Next time, those idiots at
Next time, those idiots at NASA should put wiper blades on the solar panels.
Next time...
To be fair "those idiots" took a rover designed to last 90 days and have stretched it out for 4 years. They have exceeded the design requirements by a factor of 16 _without_ windshield wipers. Perhaps we could cut them a little slack?
lol.. where is the mod down
lol.. where is the mod down button. What these people have accomplished with a mission that was intended to last 90 days is amazing.
idiots?
Payload weight restrictions and moving parts most likely restricted this type of mechanical solution. Additionally, the time frame for the project did not require it. I'm guessing the engineers had some pretty good reason for it. As for your idiot comment - I'm guessing you have a pretty sharp looking flat spoiler on your 93 corrolla... or maybe some speed holes in your hood.
The buildup of dust on the
The buildup of dust on the solar panels was a known issue, and various ways of handling it were considered.
A wiperblade has the disadvantage of weighing a significant amount (remember, every gram of payload takes a significant amount of fuel to get out of Earth orbit) for something that would be used very infrequently, and could scratch up the solar cells (wiping rock dust across glass isn't a smart idea)
Another concept was for basically a can of air to puff the dust off.
-problems: mass, the limited amount of air you'd be able to carry, and no way to guarantee that the dust wouldn't just settle back on the panels after it was blown off.
Also there was the concept of 'peel off' layers of plastic on the panels, that would naturally just peel/curl up after a period of time. problems: mass, and the possibility of the curled up plastic getting into the rovers mechanisms.
Another factor for all of these: COST and TIME to develop. Read Steve Squiyers book 'Roving Mars' for a good look at what goes on with the development of one of these projects. High drama at times!