...Mars Exploration Rover and Kepler Space Telescope May Prove Existence of Extraterrestrial Life On September 28, NASA’s mars exploration rover, Opportunity, made a ground-breaking discovery, finding evidence of water on Mars. The rover found small spheres of the minerals hematite and jarosite. On earth, hematite generally forms from water, and jarosite in the presence of water. Opportunity also captured images of layers on rocks, generally formed by water erosion. Evidence of water on the Red Planet had been previously discovered by a former University of Arizona student Lujendra Ojha in 2010. When examining high resolution images of the Mars sent the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, steaks could be seen on the surface of the planet. The streaks, called Recurring Slope Lineae, were more prominent during summer months on mars, then faded during the winter season. During examination of the images sent from the orbiter, they found evidence of hydrated salts, which contain water molecules within them. Water is a vital part of the existence of life, so with the discovery or water on Mars, scientists are optimistic that there is a possibility of life on the planet. Alfred McEwen, a...
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...Cody Nitz Mars Rovers In the summer of 2003 we sent two rovers to Mars. These rovers where sent to Mars to give NASA a better understanding of the climate and water on Mars. With the technology that the Mars Rovers had it was like we were sending up two geologists. Spirit was the first rover to be sent off to Mars and it left June 10th, 2003 and landed January 3rd, 2004. It would be followed by Opportunity which was sent off on July 7th, 2003 and landed January 24th, 2004. NASA’s original goal for the rovers was very easy. They just wanted them to travel 40 meters in 1 day and to travel a total of 1 kilometer total. These rovers did that and a whole lot more and are currently still going. The design of these rovers came from the basic design of the 1997 Mars Pathfinder Mission. The rovers are identical they have 6 wheels and good suspension for driving over some harsh Mars surfaces. It has solar panels for its energy and also has radioisotope heater units for when the rover does not get a lot of sunlight. Each rover weighs 174 kilograms, is 1.6 meters long, and is 1.5 meters tall. The rovers also had a lot of heavy duty airbags for landing. These were very necessary because if any little piece broke it could affect the whole mission. The rovers also included different tools that would study the rocks and the surface of Mars to decide if there had ever been water on the planet. These tools consisted of a panoramic camera that helped the scientist from NASA...
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...Comparing three Mars rovers Mars is not easy to reach or explore. Nearly two-thirds of all missions have failed. However, in recent years, the United States has had more success landing rovers. Of recent missions, two rovers essentially crash-landed in a cocoon of airbags and one soft-landed. The first lander, Sojourner, part of the Mars Pathfinder mission, was about the size of a milk crate and weighed 33 pounds. It landed using airbags on July 4, 1997, and stayed active 10 times longer than scheduled (NASA, Chronology of Mars Exploration 1). The next missions were the twin rovers Spirit and Opportunity, which were launched a few weeks apart and landed on opposite sides of the planet in the summer of 2003, also using airbag technology. They both were the size of golf carts and outlasted their scheduled missions many times over. Curiosity landed in August 2012 and is the largest and most ambitious rover. The size and mass of a Mini Cooper, it survived a complex soft landing. Curiosity also supports the most complex science, containing drills, lasers, and a small analytical laboratory (Gibson 289). Curiosity can communicate with Earth in three ways. First, Curiosity can engage in direct communication from the rover to Earth’s Deep Space Network. Second, Curiosity can use a fast relay via the orbiting Mars Odyssey spacecraft. Finally, Curiosity can utilize a slow relay to communicate via the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The scientific missions have focused on whether Mars once harbored...
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...The topic of Mars has long been of interest to astronomers and science fiction enthusiast alike. The premise of another planet supporting life excites people like no other. In 2004, The United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration, or NASA, began preliminary science experiments and instrument proposals for the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) and a robotic space probe mission to Mars. After long testing and development stages, the mission birthed a rover, Curiosity, which was launched in November 2011 and subsequently landed August 6th 2012. As we speak Curiosity is collecting invaluable data for our understanding of mars including: habitability, climate and geology, and possibly setting up a manned mission to mars in the future. The possibilities that this new information can bring are the main reason that scientist and nonscientists alike are so excited for this pivotal mission. The Curiosity project began development in 2004. Astronomers and engineers worldwide entered their instrument proposals to NASA so they could hopefully be a part of the final mission. These components were sifted thoroughly and select components were developed for four years. By 2008, they were mostly finished with the hardware and software developments and they carried on testing. This extensive testing delayed liftoff, which was originally slated for September 2009, until November 2011. NASA then administered a poll on their website to decide the name of the rover, with Curiosity ultimately...
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...2015 Comparing Three Mars Rovers Mars is not easy to reach or explore. Nearly two-thirds of all missions have failed. However, in recent years, the United States has had more success landing rovers. Of recent missions, two rovers essentially crash-landed in a cocoon of airbags and one soft-landed. The first lander, Sojourner, part of the Mars Pathfinder mission, was about the size of a milk crate and weighed 33 pounds. It landed using airbags on July 4, 1997, and stayed active 10 times longer than scheduled. The next missions were the twin rovers Spirit and Opportunity, which were launched a few weeks apart and landed on opposite sides of the planet in the summer of 2003, also using airbag technology (NASA 1) . They both were the size of golf carts and outlasted their scheduled missions many times over. Curiosity landed in August 2012 and is the largest and most ambitious rover. The size and mass of a Mini Cooper, it survived a complex soft landing (Gibson 289). Curiosity also supports the most complex science, containing drills, lasers, and a small analytical laboratory. Curiosity can communicate with Earth in three ways. First, Curiosity can engage in direct communication from the rover to Earth’s Deep Space Network. Second, Curiosity can use a fast relay via the orbiting Mars Odyssey spacecraft. Finally, Curiosity can utilize a slow relay to communicate via the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The scientific missions have focused on whether Mars once harbored flowing water...
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...completion. The project will be tracked using precise quality measures, and the contractor will have to submit detailed monthly status reports. The RFP for Mulder simply includes a statement of the type of work to be done, an expected budget limit, and the desired completion date. QUESTIONS 1. What do you think will happen? 2. How do you think the crisis facing Yrisket will affect the Mulder project? The Agentfox project? ENDNOTES 1. It could be argued that Phase D in the electioncampaign project will be extended if the candidate is elected, whereupon the “operation” phase represents the elected official’s full political term—but that would be stretching the analogy! For the Mars rover, however, reducing and interpreting the data that the rover signaled back would likely continue for months or years after the rover has stopped functioning; if analysis and interpretation of data were included in the original system concept for the project, then it would constitute Phase D for the system. 2. Traditionally, the practice of systems engineering has been applied to large-scale, hardware Based on proposals received in response to the RFPs, the managers responsible for Mulder and Agentfoxeachselectacontractor. Unknowntoeither manager is that they select the same contractor, Yrisket Systems. Yrisket is selected for the Mulder project because...
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...MISSION TO MARS Nearly two decades after the Viking was successfully launched and put in Mars, NASA were ready to launch their second major mission to Mars with Mars Observer (MO) at a cost of nearly 1 billion dollars and more than a decade of preparation. This was a complete disaster after the controllers lost contact with the spacecraft three days prior to its deceleration into Mars’ Orbit. The losses incurred were of gigantic proportions and NASA could not afford any more failures. This made them rethink their approach towards space exploration and they eventually came up with the philosophy of FBC (Faster, Better, Cheaper). The aim of this approach was to change the way they worked on space exploration. Instead of spending billions of dollars and decades of effort in coming up with one spacecraft which has a lot of functionalities, FBC aimed at creating smaller and specific missions with strict constraints in money and time. The idea was to diversify the risk across multiple smaller projects rather than laying all the eggs in a single basket. This approach forced the developers to come up with innovative, out of the box solutions to cut down the costs. Another advantage in this approach is that the failure of a mission will not be as catastrophic as before. This really paid off on the first mission when Pathfinder was successfully launched into Mars within the specified constraints. However, things started getting awry when the challenge bar was raised too high....
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...than Earth in many ways when it comes to the soil and the plate tectonics. Red soil. Mars is called the red planet for a reason. The soil on Mars is rich in magnetic iron oxides which is rust. Scientists took a soil sample that mimics that of Mars and tested it to see if it would rust the way it looks like on Mars. The iron was unchanged after a year in a dry atmosphere and finally changed when the sample was put in a wet atmosphere. (R., 2005) Canyons. The martian canyons are huge compared to the ones seen on Earth. Scientist suggest that there had to have been a continual flow of water to erode the rock and form the deep and long canyons. Valles Marineris is a canyon near Olympus Mons. The canyon is 2500 miles long and 7 miles deep. (Cowen, 1998) Volcanoes. Mars is home to the largest volcano in the solar system, Olympus Mons. Olympus Mons is extinct and stands 16 miles (25 kilometers) and has a caldera that is 50 miles (80 kilometers) wide. Nearby are three smaller volcanoes that are also extinct. These volcanoes are near the canyon, Valles Marineris. From Mars no longer generating heat...
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...Mouwdy 0831545 ESS 102 AE The Curiosity Mars Rover has become a Twitter celebrity these past couple years. In the upcoming science-fiction paper, we will be taking a look inside the mind of curiosity to see what his day-to-day life is like on Mars. Specifically, it will discuss Curiosity’s inception, construction, fictitious rise to sentience, journey to Mars, as well as give a glimpse into its first couple years on the Red Planet. The aim of this paper is to explore the technological advancements specific to robotic missions to space that were required in order to make the Curiosity mission possible. In today’s world, one tends to take robotic space travel for granted. However, it has not always been as easy as it is now. In fact, it is still a very complicated process that takes thousands of people and...
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...The Red Planet, Mars, is a rich destination for scientific discovery. For years scientists and astronauts have studied the formation and atmosphere on Mars through comparisons with Earth, in hope of one day making it habitable for humans. By the end of 2039, NASA aims to put humans on Mars and through future exploration uncover evidence of life, answering one of the “fundamental mysteries of the cosmos” . However this journey requires technology specifically designed to adjust to the alternate atmosphere on Mars. Once humans have landed, precautions must be ensured to minimize the impact of humans. But through this mission, scientists and astronauts can offer greater discoveries to humankind, more than what any robot can observe on Mars. Despite these great expectations, there are even greater consequences of space exploration. The journey to Mars will require extraordinary technology. NASA has predicted that the trip will last approximately six to eight months each way depending on the orbits of Earth and Mars....
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...Introduction “Earth and Mars have a lot in common. They formed around the same time -- about 4.6 billion years ago -- and, as on Earth, a Martian day lasts about 24 hours (Ross, 2016, p.8). This is one of the many reasons why humans should colonize Mars. Humans should colonize Mars because it is the closest planet to Earth within the habitable zone, also with current technology it is the most feasible planet that is within reach of Earth. Colonizing Mars would help Earth with its problems with resources and space control for humans. Why Mars? The big question to colonizing another planet, is why Mars out of all of the other planets in our solar system? As Thompson (2012) stated, “Mars is more like Earth than any other place in the known universe”...
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...The Mission to Mars Project Signature Assignment Submitted to: Dr. Archer 06/28/2013 Abstract The purpose of this paper is to describe what the Mission to Mars Project and understand how they plan on surviving accordingly and what they plan to accomplish. The Mission to Mars project is a huge exploration venture for man-kind and can possibly cause a paradigm shift in our world as we know it today. I will describe the Mission exactly as it planned and many flaws that come with their plans. NASA has been defunded so this mission has been privatized by a nonprofit organization (Mission One). Mission One is seeking individuals to volunteer for their mission to Mars. The individuals they choose for the mission will have to expect to live on Mars and colonize the red planet. Most of their plans are just theory and I will research more of their plans like growing vegetation, using solar power, and survival. Introduction to “The Mission to Mars” Project Many great men and women have been able to experience the glory beyond our atmosphere. Retired NASA astronaut, Frank Borman, was one of those great men. Borman was one of the first 24 individuals to fly around the moon. Borman is a modern explorer, beyond the constraints of the seas, or land, Borman was able to reach new heights. This great explorer once said, “Exploration really is the essence of the human spirit, and to pause, to falter, to turn our back...
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...space. It was also planned to provide transportation, maintenance, and act as a staging base for possible future missions to the Moon, Mars and asteroids. It is a joint project between five participating space agencies: NASA, the Russian Federal Space Agency, JAXA, ESA, and CSA. On May 25 2011, Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (or SpaceX) became the world’s first privately held company to send a cargo load to the ISS via the Dragon spacecraft. The assembly began in November 1998 and the current planned date to operate the station is until 2028. 2. Mars Science Laboratory: What is the main objective of NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission? When was it launched and when did it land on Mars? Explain the major differences between this mission and Mars Exploration Rovers (MER) mission? The purpose of NASA’S MSL mission is to look for an environment where microbes could exist. It was launched on November 26, 2011 at 0702, PST and landed August 5, 2012 at 2232, PDT. The major differences are the size (ability to land a very large, heavy rover to the surface of Mars), it carries a radioisotope power system that generates electricity from the heat of plutonium's radioactive decay (it gives the mission a longer operating lifespan of 687 Earth days), greater mobility/operational flexibility, enhanced science payload capability, exploration of a larger range of latitudes/altitudes, and the capability to analyze Martian...
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...During my research, some very interesting facts were accumulated. By accumulating modern data on Mars, I attempted to outline the possibilities of colonization in my own perspective. One consideration is that not only is technology lifting mankind up into new heights, but we are on the verge of a new cooperation on a global scale. This cooperation that I am conveying is that world governments are now working together to eventually go to Mars. This exploration will be a culmination of data produced from the rovers that are currently sending data to us from Mars. (http://www.googleearth.com, go to Mars entry) We now know there are natural resources available to use to sustain life, and harvesting them will lead to our first colony being started and expanding there. The question arises, as to how to get there, and with careful thought, the technology that we now possess will certainly deliver us there to Mars. The first fact to consider is that we have a natural satellite that is only approximately 252,000 miles away from us, which is the Moon. (www.answers.ask.com) (http://www.chacha.com) We also have the International Space Station, revolving around the earth. (http://wiki.answers.com) We are also going to be building an outer space vehicle that is larger than the Gemini space capsule, but will be built to go deeper into space and stay there longer. On January 14, 2004, then President George W. Bush announced the “Orion” spacecraft. This spacecraft is a replacement of the space...
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...Space Exploration Must Continue If The United States of America (USA) discontinues space exploration America will not continue to be viewed as a world leader by other countries. According to Encyclopedia Britannica Online Academic Edition, “Space exploration is the investigation, by means of manned and unmanned spacecraft, of the reaches of the universe beyond Earth’s atmosphere and the use of the information so gained to increase knowledge of the cosmos and benefit humanity” ("Space Exploration"). Even though financial costs are on the rise, the continuance of space exploration is imperative to our developing world because learning about life on other planets, untapped natural resources, and scientific research is essential to remaining a world leader. Our four fathers began space exploration many moons ago. It is imperative that we follow in their footsteps and have not only the courage to continue but also have the drive to want to succeed in this area of exploration. The USA is known as one of the leading world powers of scientific research and technology, if the nation is to remain in this position the USA must forge ahead with space exploration. As of today we do not have proof that we are the only life source in the universe. Scientist search for proof of other beings in the universe, “This year scientist identified sulfur, nitrogen, hydrogen, oxygen, phosphors, and carbon some very vital elements need to support life on a planet” ("Science Daily"). ...
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