- 13 Φεβ 2019, 23:04
#566019
NASA declares 'mission complete' for Opportunity rover
After nearly 15 years exploring the Red Planet, the Mars Exploration Rover mission has come to a close.
http://www.astronomy.com/news/2019/02/m ... u9t8pRfYJYAs of January 24, Opportunity — with an original mission plan lasting just 90 days and covering only about 1,100 yards (1 km) of distance — had clocked 15 years on Mars. The rover had long surpassed both its original three-month warranty period, and its twin rover, Spirit, which fell silent in 2010 from a location NASA named “Troy,” on the western side of the Home Plate plateau. Spirit, which suffered wheel damage, became stuck at Troy and was unable to collect sufficient sunlight during the following martian winter, similarly suffering a lack of power and cold damage.
By early last June, the rover’s location, in “Perseverance Valley” on the western rim of the crater Endeavour, had been engulfed by a growing dust storm. That storm clouded the red Planet’s skies with dust and blotting out the Sun. Opportunity, which relied on sunlight to charge its batteries and keep its electronics warm, went to sleep as a protective measure against the prolonged period of darkness. But even after the skies above it began to clear in early August, the rover slept on.
By September 11, the atmosphere above the rover’s location had cleared enough for adequate sunlight to reach the rover’s panels, provided they were relatively free of dust. It also started the clock on a 45-day period that NASA believed would be the best window of time for getting a response from the rover.
Throughout that period, NASA’s Deep Space Network continued to broadcast commands to the rover, which likely suffered a number of “faults” due to the prolonged lack of sunlight. By consistently actively pinging the rover during both preplanned recovery times and other random intervals, engineers had hoped to catch Opportunity during an awake period.
But following the final planned attempt, NASA has now concluded that Opportunity will remain silent and stationary at her final location.
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