Dust Storms Threaten Mars Lander

BBC ^ | 12-16-2003 | Dr David Whitehouse

[blam]

Dust storms threaten Mars landers

By Dr David Whitehouse
BBC News Online science editor

Mars on 13 December as the dust storm was spreading

A series of dust storms could threaten the success of three space probes heading for Mars, astronomers warn. The scientists say some small storms are combining to obscure a large part of the planet's northern hemisphere.

If they build into a global storm, which can happen, it could interfere with the solar panels the probes use to generate power for their instruments.

On 25 December, Europe's Beagle 2 will land, followed by two US rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, on 3 and 24 January.

Uncertain prospects

Dust storms are not unusual on Mars. Two years ago one of the largest dust storms seen in several decades raged on the planet for many weeks, making it impossible to see surface features.

Observers noted the current storms starting to churn on Mars in the first week of December.

Since then, they have grown in size, and have been joined by smaller storms on their fringes.

Bruce Jakosky, of the University of Colorado, helped choose the US probes' landing sites. He said that it was too early to know if this storm pattern was something to worry about.

"We don't know what is going to happen to this one," he said.

Beagle's solar panels may be affected

If they continue to develop to encompass the whole planet, the three spacecraft on their way to the Martian surface could experience operational difficulties when they get down.

Dust in the atmosphere could be deposited on their solar panels, reducing the amount of energy they generate throughout their missions. But it is not just the landing phase that can be hindered.

Sunlight heats airborne dust grains, warming the atmosphere, which then expands.

When this happens it can cause problems for orbiting spacecraft, or for spacecraft entering the atmosphere en route to a touchdown.

US space agency scientists say they are monitoring the situation closely.

[Eris]

Clearly, global warming caused by humans is to blame.

The myopic Martians should have signed Kyoto.

[KellyAdmirer]

NASA has learned from its failures to prepare the public for failure. Now that's progress!

[JustPlainJoe]

Isn't it funny how these dust storms appeared to start just after Bush STOLE the election! That proves it - it's BUSH's fault! (well, that's what I read in the newspaper...)

Don't worry, President Dean will clean up that bad old Republican mess on Mars!

[Tacis]

No, if was Bush'f failure to sign Kyoto that causes this and ALL other weather problem, everywhere. Yeah, Dean told me.

[Diogenesis]

Perky K. Couric: "These dust storms are President Bush's fault."

[js1138]

This is President Bush's fault.

[danneskjold]

The Mars "face" musta sneezed...

[The Great RJ]

Must be the result of Martians driving SUV's--isn't driving SUV's the cause of all global warming, traffic deaths, increased snowshoe accidents and excessive earwax formation.

[Analyzing Inconsistencies]

Couldn't we get SOOOO much more accomplished regarding Mars (etcetera) if only government space agencies such as NASA simply offered competitive prizes like the one Charles Lindberg won for crossing the Atlantic? NASA's allowed to propose competitive prizes but unlike DARPA, NASA conveniently won't jeopardize its bureaucrats' and pet contractors' sinecures (I mean "jobs") by offering them. For more on this statist scandal from the space program which has a larger budget than all the rest of the world's civilian space agencies COMBINED:

http://www.SpaceProjects.com/prizes

[Analyzing Inconsistencies]

Related thread:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1046570/posts

Did Astrium, an ESA-anointed monopolistic contractor, actually WANT its lean-budgeted Beagle 2 Mars mission to fail in order to secure greater funding for subsequent interplanetary missions funded by increasingly stimulated European taxpayers?