Wow, awesome. I can't wait until it arrives.

We're so lucky to live in such an exciting time that we can send vehicles to alien planets for exploration. Well, assuming we don't miss.

Yeah, why not? The chances of anything coming from Mars are a million to one.

ecmoRandomNumbers: BurnShrike: Wow, awesome. I can't wait until it arrives.

We're so lucky to live in such an exciting time that we can send vehicles to alien planets for exploration. Well, assuming we don't miss.

I think we should send large projectiles to Phobos and Deimos for target practice. What's the worst that could happen?

Well, you might piss these guys off.

ecmoRandomNumbers: BurnShrike: Wow, awesome. I can't wait until it arrives.

We're so lucky to live in such an exciting time that we can send vehicles to alien planets for exploration. Well, assuming we don't miss.

I think we should send large projectiles to Phobos and Deimos for target practice. What's the worst that could happen?

I think it's about time NASA probed Uranus.

/amiright?

ecmoRandomNumbers: BurnShrike: Wow, awesome. I can't wait until it arrives.

We're so lucky to live in such an exciting time that we can send vehicles to alien planets for exploration. Well, assuming we don't miss.

I think we should send large projectiles to Phobos and Deimos for target practice. What's the worst that could happen?

Don't tempt fate to answer that.
We just lost Phobos grunt, and Mars has a habit of eating spacecraft.

I'll wait till the landing to celebrate.

When it was clear, I could see the shuttle plume from my neck of the woods. I wonder how this plume will compare to the shuttles. I wanted to go over to the other coast for this one but the timing is all wrong.

BurnShrike, the chainsaw is NOT a ranged weapon.

For exactly the opposite reason that the rocket launcher is not a melee weapon.

/but boy is it ever fun as a melee weapon! Phyrric victory is still a victory

heh We humans sure do spend a lot of cash just to make little blast craters on other planets.


But seriously, god speed you little chunk of earth tech.

What an amazing time to be alive. We actually have the ability to send objects built here to another planet. If only our illiterate, half-naked, hunter gatherer ancestors could see us now.

Hey, how'd that Russian Mars probe do?

ecmoRandomNumbers: cretinbob: ecmoRandomNumbers: 2wolves: "Now was that meters... or feet? We'll go with feet."

Better go with hogsheads rods (or chains) for accuracy. Or leagues.

hogshead is a measure of volume, not distance

Ya sure?

1 hogshead is 2 barrels (63 gallons). Beer barrels are 31g though which makes perfect sense.

miss diminutive: What an amazing time to be alive. We actually have the ability to send objects built here to another planet. If only our illiterate, half-naked, hunter gatherer ancestors could see us now.

Detroit has tv's, don't they?.

We sent Spirit, but she's passed away. We sent Opportunity, and conveniently he landed where there were things for him to look at that hadn't been expected. Now we're sending Curiosity, which is bigger, faster and has more sensors than the other two put together. (Bi-Curiosity?)

But it also has a friggin' laser mounted on its head. Not just for range-finding or mapping, it's for vaporizing samples from up to 7 meters away. We're sending a nuclear-powered, laser-equipped robot tank to Mars.

Harry_Seldon: ecmoRandomNumbers: BurnShrike: Wow, awesome. I can't wait until it arrives.

We're so lucky to live in such an exciting time that we can send vehicles to alien planets for exploration. Well, assuming we don't miss.

I think we should send large projectiles to Phobos and Deimos for target practice. What's the worst that could happen?

Well, you might piss these guys off.

[home.comcast.net image 297x245]

What about the Leather Goddesses?

Very excited for this.

Does anyone have a link to a vid of the landing sequence? The hovering skycrane looks almost as much fun as the bouncy castle they used for the last two rovers.

Curiosity kills Caturday?

My name's been registered for the onboard microchip for few years. A million others will be on it, and even a virtual presence makes me smile.

I'm not worried about the launch, the Atlas V is proving to be quite reliable. It's the insane landing sequence that worries me. When I first saw it my reaction was "they can't be serious!" I give the landing a 50/50 chance of succeeding.

/hope Curiosity brought its towel
//it may need it

BurnShrike: Wow, awesome. I can't wait until it arrives.

We're so lucky to live in such an exciting time that we can send vehicles to alien planets for exploration. Well, assuming we don't miss.

Meanwhile in Arkansas people were almost killing each other over $2 waffle makers...

To my non-rocket scientist eye that thing looks like it would execute a rapid U-turn and head straight back down.
I'm sure the NASA guys know better than me, but that was my reaction.
I hope it works perfectly. We've come a long way since John Carter.

Zoidfarb: Very excited for this.

Does anyone have a link to a vid of the landing sequence? The hovering skycrane looks almost as much fun as the bouncy castle they used for the last two rovers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15882485 (new window)

ecmoRandomNumbers
BurnShrike: Wow, awesome. I can't wait until it arrives.

We're so lucky to live in such an exciting time that we can send vehicles to alien planets for exploration. Well, assuming we don't miss.

"missing" is rarely the problem. Hitting far to hard on the other hand...

Zoidfarb: Very excited for this.

Does anyone have a link to a vid of the landing sequence? The hovering skycrane looks almost as much fun as the bouncy castle they used for the last two rovers.

Here. (new window)

It is raving insanity. I hope it works but fear it will crash and not burn. (No O₂ to support fire.)

ABQGOD 2011-11-25 07:13:06 PM
Zoidfarb: Very excited for this.

Does anyone have a link to a vid of the landing sequence? The hovering skycrane looks almost as much fun as the bouncy castle they used for the last two rovers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15882485 (new window)

From that link...
...set for one of the most ambitious space missions ever devised....

yeah, except those silly little runs that put human farking beings on the g.d. moon.


// I thought bbc was supposed to be better than US news *guess not*.

OnlyM3:
"missing" is rarely the problem. Hitting far to hard on the other hand...

Problem is, Mars is big enough to have a decent amount of gravity but small enough to not have enough gravity to contain a substantial atmosphere. (Half of Earth's air is below 18,000'. Half of Mars' air is below something like THREE feet)

So landing is kinda tricky...

OnlyM3: ABQGOD 2011-11-25 07:13:06 PM
Zoidfarb: Very excited for this.

Does anyone have a link to a vid of the landing sequence? The hovering skycrane looks almost as much fun as the bouncy castle they used for the last two rovers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15882485 (new window)

From that link...
...set for one of the most ambitious space missions ever devised....

yeah, except those silly little runs that put human farking beings on the g.d. moon.


// I thought bbc was supposed to be better than US news *guess not*.

Human-in-the-loop, with a vested interest in survival, makes that easier in a way than a computer-run landing with a 20-minute communications lag.

After looking at the animation from the BBC link (above) I am a bit worried about how this will really work out.

Landing sequence in 5-4-3-2-1-*crickets* bxzzzz

JohnAnnArbor


Human-in-the-loop, with a vested interest in survival, makes that easier in a way than a computer-run landing with a 20-minute communications lag.

Which explains why manned missions are so much cheaper, amitire? O.o

pastorkius: ecmoRandomNumbers: cretinbob: ecmoRandomNumbers: 2wolves: "Now was that meters... or feet? We'll go with feet."

Better go with hogsheads rods (or chains) for accuracy. Or leagues.

hogshead is a measure of volume, not distance

Ya sure?

1 hogshead is 2 barrels (63 gallons). Beer barrels are 31g though which makes perfect sense.

But the probe can still make the Kessel run in two parsecs. Go figure.

JohnAnnArbor: Zoidfarb: Very excited for this.

Does anyone have a link to a vid of the landing sequence? The hovering skycrane looks almost as much fun as the bouncy castle they used for the last two rovers.

Here. (new window)

It is raving insanity. I hope it works but fear it will crash and not burn. (No O2 to support fire.)

Quicktime, fark that. Anyone got a youtube?

OnlyM3: ABQGOD 2011-11-25 07:13:06 PM
Zoidfarb: Very excited for this.

Does anyone have a link to a vid of the landing sequence? The hovering skycrane looks almost as much fun as the bouncy castle they used for the last two rovers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15882485 (new window)

From that link...
...set for one of the most ambitious space missions ever devised....

yeah, except those silly little runs that put human farking beings on the g.d. moon.


// I thought bbc was supposed to be better than US news *guess not*.

//All is set for one of the most ambitious space missions ever devised.//

I don't see what your problem is. Its one of the most ambitious space missions ever devised and you disagree with that? This is the most ambitious unmanned space mission ever to be launched by NASA with maybe the exception of the Webb space telescope.

Yes, it was awesome that they sent humans to the moon but I'd hardly call sending the largest and heaviest rover to another planet a cake walk.

bbfreak: I don't see what your problem is. Its one of the most ambitious space missions ever devised and you disagree with that?

Apparently, we are not supposed to do awesome stuff anymore as long as there is a black man in the White House.