Martian dust storm goes global
Data from orbit and from Curiosity at Gale Crater confirms that the dust storm that has shut down Opportunity is now a global storm, encircling Mars.
The Martian dust storm has grown in size and is now officially a “planet-encircling” (or “global”) dust event.
Though Curiosity is on the other side of Mars from Opportunity, dust has steadily increased over it, more than doubling over the weekend. The sunlight-blocking haze, called “tau,” is now above 8.0 at Gale Crater — the highest tau the mission has ever recorded. Tau was last measured near 11 over Opportunity, thick enough that accurate measurements are no longer possible for Mars’ oldest active rover.
This will be first global storm to occur on Mars since Curiosity landed in 2012, thus giving scientists the best opportunity to study such an event.
Meanwhile, Opportunity remains silent. This does not mean it is dead, but that it doesn’t have enough sunlight to charge its batteries. It might die during this storm if the storm lasts long enough, but we won’t know one way or the other until the storm finally eases.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Data from orbit and from Curiosity at Gale Crater confirms that the dust storm that has shut down Opportunity is now a global storm, encircling Mars.
The Martian dust storm has grown in size and is now officially a “planet-encircling” (or “global”) dust event.
Though Curiosity is on the other side of Mars from Opportunity, dust has steadily increased over it, more than doubling over the weekend. The sunlight-blocking haze, called “tau,” is now above 8.0 at Gale Crater — the highest tau the mission has ever recorded. Tau was last measured near 11 over Opportunity, thick enough that accurate measurements are no longer possible for Mars’ oldest active rover.
This will be first global storm to occur on Mars since Curiosity landed in 2012, thus giving scientists the best opportunity to study such an event.
Meanwhile, Opportunity remains silent. This does not mean it is dead, but that it doesn’t have enough sunlight to charge its batteries. It might die during this storm if the storm lasts long enough, but we won’t know one way or the other until the storm finally eases.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
This is why we need nuclear power.
The electric universe model contends Mars global dust storms tie in with opposition of earth.
wodun–
nail on the head. Every probe should be powered by internal nuclear.
–a repeat from me, but lots of good factoids contained therein:
Mars Dust Storm News
JPL teleconference 6-13-18
https://youtu.be/fIKxdRFx2Wo
(1:00:21)
–Teleconference reports the “Tau” was “11.5,” and they have pictures of what the sun currently looks like from the surface.
-Opportunity is powered by solar cells, but in the main instrument bay there are multiple small nuclear units that provide 8 watts of heat-energy to the electronics. (This is the first time I’ve heard this described, and I am unclear on specifics.)
-“Maximum design low-temperature is -50C, maximum operating low-temp is -40C, and during this storm they expect low temps to bottom out at -37C.”
–On the upside, from past storm experience– accumulated dust on the optics has tended to shed itself almost completely during good weather. The camera’s are finely calibrated and any remaining dust aberration can be taken out digitally in post-production.
Orion314–
can you give me the 5 cent tour on the “Electric Universe?”
I see a lot of youtube stuff listed with that Topic, but I’ve never delved deeply.
Wayne,
Plug nickel tour. In the electric universe, impact craters are formed by lightning, not impacts…
Opportunity was designed to only last 90 days. Would have been a waste to send it with a nuclear source.
BSJ-
thank you, and…point taken.
-just a personal preference for over-engineering. (I only play an engineer, on the interweb)
And yes– can’t beat the lifespan!
tangential– (we are, living in the Future)
“Mariner 6 and 7 Programs Missions to Mars,”
JPL 1969
https://youtu.be/1rqjywAXYks
20:46
[from the Atlas Centaur Heritage Film Collection which was donated to the San Diego Air and Space Museum by Lockheed Martin and United Launch Alliance. The Collection contains 3,000 reels of 16-millimeter film. ]
Yeah, some of the E-Universe stuff sounds like it makes a lot of sense. Other times, not so much!
I checked out when I read about that part of the “theory”.
look up thunderbolts project , on youtube , a starter for the electric universe model