Comments on: Opportunity Twitters Self Portrait http://www.universetoday.com/2008/09/06/opportunity-twitters-self-portrait/ Space and astronomy news Sun, 8 Nov 2009 08:15:54 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: Rey http://www.universetoday.com/2008/09/06/opportunity-twitters-self-portrait/comment-page-1/#comment-32002 Rey Sun, 07 Sep 2008 00:56:52 +0000 http://www.universetoday.com/?p=17813#comment-32002 WALL·E !!! OMG, he is lost in Mars :D WALL·E !!! OMG, he is lost in Mars :D

]]> By: Greg W http://www.universetoday.com/2008/09/06/opportunity-twitters-self-portrait/comment-page-1/#comment-31964 Greg W Sat, 06 Sep 2008 16:24:16 +0000 http://www.universetoday.com/?p=17813#comment-31964 At something like $$5000 per kilo of mass launched, any spacecraft in an exercise is compromise. Yes, they could have developed an anti-dusting system to go with the rovers but that would have meant that one or more of the science packages couldn't go along. Both rovers only had a 90 Sol life expectancy so dust was planned for and expected. What wasn't expected was the martian dust devils that occasionally cleaned the solar panels. At something like $$5000 per kilo of mass launched, any spacecraft in an exercise is compromise. Yes, they could have developed an anti-dusting system to go with the rovers but that would have meant that one or more of the science packages couldn't go along. Both rovers only had a 90 Sol life expectancy so dust was planned for and expected. What wasn't expected was the martian dust devils that occasionally cleaned the solar panels.

]]> By: Kevin F. http://www.universetoday.com/2008/09/06/opportunity-twitters-self-portrait/comment-page-1/#comment-31962 Kevin F. Sat, 06 Sep 2008 15:59:02 +0000 http://www.universetoday.com/?p=17813#comment-31962 <I>Dust has gathered on the rover's solar panels, and any additional dust would hamper power levels as well.</I> Okay, here's one thing that has annoyed me since Pathfinder - why don't they put a long brush, like a windshield wiper on the solar panels to sweep the dust off when it accumulates too much? Sure, you wouldn't want to keep sweeping them every day - it would scratch the panels - but you could swipe them once the dust gets too think! It's not like we didn't know there's dust storms on Mars... Dust has gathered on the rover's solar panels, and any additional dust would hamper power levels as well.

Okay, here's one thing that has annoyed me since Pathfinder – why don't they put a long brush, like a windshield wiper on the solar panels to sweep the dust off when it accumulates too much? Sure, you wouldn't want to keep sweeping them every day – it would scratch the panels – but you could swipe them once the dust gets too think! It's not like we didn't know there's dust storms on Mars…

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