Dust storm could provide challenge to Mars landers
Posted: Mon, Dec 15, 2003, 2:29 PM ET (1929 GMT)
A new dust storm covering a large part of Mars may make the upcoming landing of three missions more hazardous, planetary scientists report. The new dust storm was first seen late last week and now covers much of the northern hemisphere of the planet, the Rocky Mountain News reported Monday. The storm, if it persists and expands to become a global dust storm, could hamper the landings of one British and two American spacecraft. Britain's Beagle 2 is scheduled to land early December 25, while NASA;s twin rovers Spirit and Opportunity will land on January 3 and 24, respectively. Even if the storm does not affect the landings, the dust kicked up by the storms could coat the solar panels on the landers, reducing their ability to generate power. Such dust storms usually "appear and die out in a few days to a week, or they expand into global storms," University of Colorado planetary scientist Bruce Jakosky told the newspaper. "We don't know what's going to happen with this one."
A new dust storm covering a large part of Mars may make the upcoming landing of three missions more hazardous, planetary scientists report. The new dust storm was first seen late last week and now covers much of the northern hemisphere of the planet, the Rocky Mountain News reported Monday. The storm, if it persists and expands to become a global dust storm, could hamper the landings of one British and two American spacecraft. Britain's Beagle 2 is scheduled to land early December 25, while NASA;s twin rovers Spirit and Opportunity will land on January 3 and 24, respectively. Even if the storm does not affect the landings, the dust kicked up by the storms could coat the solar panels on the landers, reducing their ability to generate power. Such dust storms usually "appear and die out in a few days to a week, or they expand into global storms," University of Colorado planetary scientist Bruce Jakosky told the newspaper. "We don't know what's going to happen with this one."
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Friday, April 3
SpaceX successfully launches 29 Starlink satellites
Spectrum News — 6:39 am ET (1039 GMT) Space Force using ‘integrated test teams’ to speed up capability delivery
Defensescoop — 6:39 am ET (1039 GMT) Space Launcher Shortages Are Poised To Persist
Aviation Week — 6:38 am ET (1038 GMT) SpaceX and OpenAI IPOs are unlikely to bring skyrocketing returns that Amazon and Apple did, as companies go public later in life and early investors cash out
The Conversation — 6:36 am ET (1036 GMT) SpaceX’s IPO could be the largest-ever public offering—what to know before investing, from experts
CNBC — 6:36 am ET (1036 GMT) |
