After 22 months, NASA hears from "lost" spacecraft

CBS News ^ | August 22, 2016, 4:25 PM | William Harwood

[BenLurkin]

NASA’s Deep Space Network, or DSN, “established a lock on the STEREO-B (spacecraft’s) downlink carrier at 6:27 p.m. EDT,” NASA said in a statement. “The downlink signal was monitored by the Mission Operations team over several hours to characterize the attitude of the spacecraft and then transmitter high voltage was powered down to save battery power.

...

Launched in 2006, the STEREO mission featured two spacecraft -- STEREO-A and STEREO-B -- designed to monitor solar activity from different locations, one “ahead” in its orbit and one “behind,” allowing scientists to see the entire star, not just the side facing Earth. The spacecraft were built and are managed by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Md.

...

Both spacecraft featured a “command loss timer” designed to force the flight computer to reboot if it didn’t hear from Earth over a three-day period. On the far side of the sun, the command loss timer would trigger repeated computer resets during the three months the spacecraft were out of contact with Earth.

To make sure the system was working properly, flight controllers tested both spacecraft by withholding commands and forcing the command loss time to trigger a reboot. The STEREO-A spacecraft responded normally. But STEREO-B had major problems.

Based on fragmentary data received before contact was lost, engineers concluded the timer triggered a restart as expected, but STEREO-B’s inertial measurement unit and star trackers, which tell the flight computer how the spacecraft is oriented and moving through space, suffered malfunctions.

[KC_Lion]

“Play More Chuck Berry”

[Hot Tabasco]

After 22 months, NASA hears from "lost" spacecraft

Need beer.......and toilet paper.

[JoeProBono]

[BlueLancer]

SEND MORE ALUMINUM FOIL!!

[onedoug]

It would be really cool to have these both up and running.

[al baby]

Playing reruns of the lone rager and dragnet

[lapsus calami]

 

 

"I am Nomad - my function is to probe for biological infestations, to destroy that which is not perfect."

 

Uh ohhhh....

 

 

[PGR88]

“help! where am I?”

[wally_bert]

Dragnet, The Whistler, The Whisperer, Candy Matson, and Fort Laramie would be great.

[Fai Mao]

Be careful V-ger might return

(Yeah an obscure Star Trek reference)

[Viking2002]

When I was about the same age, I really wanted to see what was under Penny's Reynolds Wrap.......

[Calvin Locke]

I think Space Patrol, Dimension-X, X-Minus-One would be better choices.

Then there’s the BBC mini-series Journey into Space.

[Yaelle]

It’s “Send More Chuck Berry” and it was my idea too, glad it got in at post #2. :)

[mass55th]

“Can I Get Me A Hunting License Here?”

[BlueLancer]

"When I was about the same age, I really wanted to see what was under Penny's Reynolds Wrap......."

Watching Penny on "Lost in Space" over the years, it was sort of like watching a slow-motion Jiffy Pop commercial ...

[wally_bert]

I forgot about the X’s.

Some of those are really good even if a bit dated.

I found Daymon Runyon theater a while back and love it.

[ClearCase_guy]

“I never got lost. But there was one time when I was confused for three days.” — Daniel Boone.

[Talisker]

Watching Penny on "Lost in Space" over the years, it was sort of like watching a slow-motion Jiffy Pop commercial ...

Now that's funny...

[KC_Lion]

Great Minds think alike Yaelle *Hugs*