Chang’e-4 and Yutu-2 awake for 9th lunar day
China’s lander Chang’e-4 and rover Yutu-2 have been reactivated from sleep mode to begin their ninth lunar day on the far side of the Moon.
Their nominal mission had been three lunar days, so both spacecraft have now exceed that three times over.
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
China’s lander Chang’e-4 and rover Yutu-2 have been reactivated from sleep mode to begin their ninth lunar day on the far side of the Moon.
Their nominal mission had been three lunar days, so both spacecraft have now exceed that three times over.
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
It seems to me that these days, pretty much any mission that can actually arrive at its designated destination safely, can continue almost indefinitely.
( If only spirit and opportunity had solar cell wipers of some sort they would still be roving now…)
This bodes well for the future…. It seems we have nailed how to keep machinery running in the harshest of environments…
NASA seems to have mastered landing on Mars ( fingers crossed ), ESA and Roscosmos not so much… But the hardware from everyone (apart from Japan… But they are bloody good at workarounds!) Seems to be rock solid.
The knowledge gained keeping all these missions running far beyond there expected lifespan is going to be very valuable to future manned missions…
A big high five to the Chinese space program… It’s all good for our future as a multi planet species!!!