Here is the first image back from Phoenix.
It is an image of the footpad. Clearly, the proble has landed on a level surface. No obvious sign of ice… yet?
Kevin Knuth
Albany NY
Posted under Astrobiology, Astronomy, Exploration, Robotics, Space
This post was written by drknuth on May 25, 2008
At 4:53:44 p.m. Pacific Time (7:53:44 p.m. Eastern Time) NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory received radio signals from the Mars Phoenix Lander confirming that it survived its landing in the north polar region of Mars.
The probe enters the Martian atmosphere at about 78 miles above the surface and begins decelerating from its space cruise velocity of 12,500 miles per hour down to Mach 1.7 (1.7 times the speed of sound) when its parachute deployed. The parachute is jettisoned at 1 km above the surface when the probe fires its rocket thrusters to decelerate it further until it reaches either 12 meters altitude or a speed of 5 miles per hour. At this point the rocket engines stop and the probe drops to the surface.
Above is an artist’s conception.
I cant wait to see how it really will look!
Tomorrow…
Check the Phoenix Mission Site for updates!
Kevin Knuth
Albany NY
Posted under Astrobiology, Astronomy, Exploration, Mars, Robotics, Space
This post was written by drknuth on May 25, 2008
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) captured for the first time ever an avalanche in progress on another world!
These images were taken with the Hi Resolution Imaging Experiment (HiRISE) flying on the MRO. This image was taken at 34° latitude and 235.8° longitude, which is in Mars’ north polar region. The geology of this region is that of a layered dome of material, and this cliff is located at the edge of it. The cliff is about one half of a mile high! (70 m = 2300 ft) and is incredibly steep with slopes as great as 60°. The cloud of dust is about 590 feet across and extends about 625 feet from the base of the cliff.
This image was taken on February 18, 2008 at 1:05pm Martian local time. In the northern hemisphere of Mars, spring began on December 10, 2007, and the Carbon Dioxide ice (seen in the left side of the image at the top of the cliff) is beginning to thaw in the spring “heat”. The Carbon Dioxide ice does not melt, instead it sublimes (turning from a solid to a gas). As it does sediments and ice in these steep cliffs give way to avalanches.
The scientists have been watching these particular locations with the hope of catching one in action. They have succeeded!
Here you can compare before (PSP_007140_2640) and after (PSP_007338_2640) photos.
Kevin Knuth
Albany NY
Posted under Astronomy, Exploration, Mars, Space
This post was written by drknuth on March 11, 2008
The MESSENGER (MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry and Ranging) probe is approaching Mercury and is sending back the best images of the planet’s surface ever recorded!
The last spacecraft to visit Merury was Mariner 10 in 1975. The MESSENGER probe will flyby Mercury twice and eventually go into orbit around the planet in 2011. Once in orbit, the cameras will be able to resolve detail down to 60 feet across.
Tune into the MESSENGER home page for updates and images.
Kevin Knuth
Albany NY
Posted under Astronomy, Exploration, Space
This post was written by drknuth on January 16, 2008
CLARAty (Coupled-Layer Architecture for Robotic Autonomy) is a framework for reusable robotics software. It was developed in part by my former colleagues at NASA Ames Research Center in collaboration with Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Carnegie Mellon, and the University of Minnesota (my alma matter).
They are in the process of making the framework and several modules publicly available.
Videos of systems using CLARAty can be found here.
Presentations on CLARAty can be found here.
Publications can be found here.
Kevin Knuth
Albany NY
Posted under Computation, Exploration, Intelligent Systems, Robotics, Software, Solutions, Space, Technology
This post was written by drknuth on January 10, 2008
