Canada's first space probe may miss its target -- Mars

Vancouver Sun ^

[per loin]

Another failure trying for Mars. Hoagland will have a revised theory within hours.

[commish]

They lost thier Martian Rocketship the high paid spokesman said
Looks like that silly rocketship has lost it's cone shaped head

They spent 90 jillion dollars trying to get a look at Mars
I hear universal laughter ringing out among the stars

-Jimmy Buffett, Fruitcakes

[RadioAstronomer]

I know the feeling of those controllers. My very best to them in the attempt to repair the spacecraft.

[Shmokey]

Ay, hosers...stick to hockey. ay?

[Ex-Dem]

I wouldn't start gloating. We lost one of our NASA orbiters to Mars back in 1999.

[xp38]

I guess our probe took off, eh.

[ArrogantBustard]

[Orangedog]

Looks like the remaining Martian planetary defense system on Deimos took out another invading space craft. Don't those Canadians know that they need heavy tin-foil shielding to survive the Deimosian death ray cannon?! [/tinfoil]

[jimkress]

LOL!

[No Blue States]

"But if they can't repair the damage they will steer away from Mars. "Nozomi will, after once approaching Mars, escape from Martian gravitational sphere to become an artificial planet going around the orbit of the sun forever."

What a nice way of saying if they cant fix it, then it becomes just a piece of space trash.

[zeugma]

HAHA.

After the last U.S. probe to Mars that failed, I recieved an email purporting to have been from the Red Planet itself (all the planets have IP addresses and domain names). The message read:

TO: President@whitehouse.gov
FROM: trnaklrtglwnri@mars.gov
SUBJ: NASA Probes

"Please send more probes. They are crunchy and taste good with ketchup."

Sincerely,
trnaklrtglwnri aalkenliejte
Ambassador, United States of Mars

[mhking]

Canada's first space probe may miss its target -- Mars

Did it say "Made by Acme" on the side?

Just damn.

If you want on the new list, FReepmail me. This IS a high-volume PING list...

[Consort]

It's beginning to look Nozomiless.

[OXENinFLA]

Nozomi has been flying for five years and has already missed Mars once.

[RightWhale]

Another failure trying for Mars.

This counts as a success. The success rate is about 38%. 62% don't do anything at all.

[King Prout]

"Made by NASA"

[gcruse]

How on earth (oops) can they miss Mars? I mean, I can see it right out my front window. Geez.

[per loin]

How on earth (oops) can they miss Mars?

It moved.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

But Japan acknowledges it can barely control Nozomi, and the spacecraft may crash on Mars within a few weeks, or miss the planet and drift aimlessly around the sun forever.

Sounds like something you'd see in a Japanese monster movie...