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
|
|
Saturday, October 18
NASA’s Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) Data Now Available on Microsoft’s Planetary Computer
Microsoft — 8:02 pm ET (0002 GMT) China Seeks to Dominate Space in Era of ‘Unmanaged Competition’
National Defense Magazine — 9:52 am ET (1352 GMT) SpaceX to launch nearly 30 Starlink satellites
Spectrum News — 9:44 am ET (1344 GMT) Can India Become a Self-Reliant Space Power?
The Diplomat — 9:44 am ET (1344 GMT) Oman Set for Launch as Regulator Announces Spaceflight Framework
openPR — 9:41 am ET (1341 GMT) |
