Tensions rise as rival Mars probes approach their final destination

The Guardian ^ | 7 Feb, 2021 | Robin McKie

[MtnClimber]

Anxious moment for scientists in US, China and UAE as spacecrafts enter crucial stages of long journey to red planet.

The skies above Mars will witness some startling aeronautical displays in the next few days when three rival space robot probes reach the red planet after journeying for millions of miles across space.

The United Arab Emirates’ probe Hope orbiter will arrive first, on Tuesday, followed by China’s Tianwen-1 spacecraft the next day. Finally, the US rover Perseverance will make its dramatic descent to the surface of Mars on 18 February.

It is a remarkable armada that reveals the growing desire of many nations to develop their own space technology and explore the solar system. Just how well they succeed when they reach their target this week and next remains to be seen, however. Mars is an unforgiving place to visit.

Of the dozens of Mars missions since 1960, about half have crashed or missed the planet altogether, thanks to component failures, rocket engine mishaps or software errors.

“It can be a heartbreaking business,” admitted UK physicist Colin Wilson, of Oxford University. “I have had instruments on two previous Mars missions – Britain’s Beagle lander and Europe’s Schiaparelli probe – and each time I was in the control room, clutching my seat, during their descents. And on both occasions the probes crashed.”

[rktman]

In fact it’s cold as well(?). See my FR name. 😂🙌🚀

[blam]

Seen from about 6 billion kilometers (3.7 billion miles), Earth appears as a tiny dot within deep space: the blueish-white speck almost halfway up the brown band on the right.

Voyager 1, which had completed its primary mission and was leaving the Solar System, was commanded by NASA to turn its camera around and take one last photograph of Earth across a great expanse of space, at the request of astronomer and author Carl Sagan.[2] The phrase "Pale Blue Dot" was coined by Sagan himself in his reflections on the photograph's significance, documented in his 1994 book of the same name.[1]

Both Voyager Space Craft have left the solar system and continue to travel into deep space.

[diatomite]

If you have buckets of money, you too can buy a probe.

[OrioleFan]

I wonder if the China probe is virus free.

Is it powered by coal?

[Verginius Rufus]

Good timing. It will take all the attention away from the sham impeachment trial in the Senate.

[Hot Tabasco]

Both Voyager Space Craft have left the solar system

I can't help but marvel at the enormity of that statement.....

[blam]

"I can't help but marvel at the enormity of that statement..... "

Me too.

Chips I helped make in the mid-60's are probably on board those things.

[PIF]

The UAE? Who sold them a mars probe?

—
Its mission is to make Mars safe for muslims by killing the other two probes.

[PIF]

And people want to go there?

Humans better odds of submitting Everest and living to tell the tale.

With odds like that, you’d have to be nuts to sign up for that odyssey.

—
There will be a very large rock, perhaps nickle-iron, in Earth’s future that will persuade people the New Martians were correct in going there and becoming the only remaining survivors of the human race.

[PIF]

...but at least we aren’t at the mercy of some microprocessor or defective O2 tank.
—
or an errant vehicle, virus, plane crash, defective drug, war etc

[PIF]

USA and UAE will make it. China will say they made it.

UAE will crap out detonate after 4 months. USA will last 3+ years.

[21twelve]

It is just amazing how long of a “life” these craft have. IIRC, one of the Voyagers was just recently put to “sleep”. But they hope to awaken it some time in the future.

Voyager was launched in 1977. I was 17 years old. (I was past my days of being an astronaut - but it is STILL so amazing.)

A college friend that I dated ended up working on one of the MARS probes studying the geology of Mars - as close as I came to space!

[21twelve]

Hmm - a friend of mine has a daughter-in-law that works for JPL and looks at the data trying to figure out where water might be on Mars. (That’s a bit of a stretch for a claim to “fame” - but still pretty interesting!)

[blam]

"Hmm - a friend of mine has a daughter-in-law that works for JPL and looks at the data trying to figure out where water might be on Mars. (That’s a bit of a stretch for a claim to “fame” - but still pretty interesting!)"

My son is a physicist for Northrup-Grumman, just down the way from JPL.

[21twelve]

Very cool! Space exploration was so interesting to me as a kid. I guess it still is. But my career landed me on earthly explorations.

[hoagy62]

I’ll be watching on the 18th when Perseverance makes its landing attempt. At the time that Perseverance is on its way down, signals will take 20 minutes to reach Earth. So, all the controllers at JPL can do is watch and cross their fingers as the signals reach them.

If anything unfortunate happens, it’ll have happened 20 minutes prior to them seeing it.

I’m not worried about the UAE probe (still kinda wondering why they sent one there in the first place). But the Chinese probe....I wouldn’t be surprised if they installed a weapon on board to take a shot at Perseverance. But that’s just me.

[Kozak]

Not exactly pioneer stock are you?

[Chainmail]

"Our team at JPL Pasadena are the greatest. They are truly patriotic.

Since I have a brother-in-law on that JPL team and he is an outstanding patriot and a fine American (and an excellent guitarist), I have to agree!

Best wishes and fervent prayers for a successful mission!

[jmacusa]

Varlock The Vicious Supreme Ruler of Mars is not amused! Puny Earthlings we will DESTROY YOU AND YOUR PUNY PROBES!!

[Mogger]

Not exactly pioneer stock are you?

As I was thinking.

The Pilgrims and others of our ancestors faced similar and worse odds and prevailed eventually.