[extropy-chat] Spirit Rover - Galvanic Failure?

[Amara Graps]

>It seems to still be alive; sounds like a software problem:

Sounds like a rather serious problem, actually. I'm not working on this
project though, and the Mars Express scientists here know about as much
as this:

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20040122/ts_nm/space_mars_dc

There seems to be a transAtlantic competition, at least in the media,
regarding Mars. Why does the media not notice the scientific
cooperation? I see from Google news (in the U.S centered mode) all of
the news reports regarding the NASA rovers, but how could they forget
Mars Express? The images from DLR (the German space agency) are awesome,
and the spectrometer (Italian-built) is producing great data too. I know
a bit less about the other Mars Express instruments, but I have not
heard of problem with them. Beagle 2 is another story (*), but remember
that is a small part of the Mars Express mission.

I am very happy for my colleagues studying Mars, whatever country in
which they happen to be working. The Mars missions are producing good
data, so gnashing of the teeth for Spirit is really not necessary.

Amara

(*) The plasma instrument detected ions above background level from the
probe; speculation is that the 'airbag' might have had a leak, losing
gas. Beagle 2 might have hit the surface with a fatal thud.

-- 

Amara Graps, PhD
Istituto di Fisica dello Spazio Interplanetario (IFSI)
Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF),
Adjunct Assistant Professor Astronomy, AUR,
Roma, ITALIA     Amara.Graps at ifsi.rm.cnr.it