Planetary Probes

[Eclogite]

This thread is teetering on the edge of being a blog - a problem that besets most topics I think of starting, which is why I very rarely start a thread.

 

I suspect that even those quite interested in the array of robots we have exploring our planetary system forget just how many are out there. I thought this would be a good place to review that and to discuss the findings and expectations of findings for these engineering marvels. So in the great tradition of most books on planetary astronomy (once you are past the introduction) let's begin with Mercury.

 

Mercury:

NASA's MESSSENGER spacecraft has been orbiting Mercury since 2011, but made earlier passes as it manouvered into position using the minimum of fuel. It has taken over 200,000 photographs of the planet, providing coverage of the entire surface. (The much earlier Mariner 10 made three fly-bys and took 2,800 photographs in total, covering less than 2/3 of its surface.)

 

MESSENGER has also mapped Mercury's magnetic field, searched for magnetic rocks in the crust and charted the distribution of charged particles in the magnetosphere; provided accurate topographical information using a laser altimeter;determined crustal composition using a gamma ray and neutron spectrometer and a low energy X-ray detector; assessed mass distribution in the planet via doppler flutuations related to the craft's velocity; and noted the composition and density of Mercury's miniscule atmosphere.

 

It has also snapped photos of at least two comets that have passed within a couple of million miles of Mercury. The main science program has been completed, but the spacecraft is still viable and continues to produce data. Since April 20th, 2014 it has been in a very low orbit - around 200 km. - affording higher resolution opportunities for many of the sensors. I understand the craft has enough fuel and power to operate through the end of 2015.

 

NASA MESSENGER

Planetary News

Mercury

 

ESA, the European Space Agency, in conjunction with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency plan a joint mission, consisting of two orbiters. The ESA orbiter will study surface and internal compositions, while the JAXA craft will focus on the magnetosphere. Scheduled for departure in 2016 it will not arrive until 2024. These long transit times are related to multiple gravity assists around other planets in order to change the velocity of the craft.

 

BepiColombo

 

Too be continued - details will follow on:

 

Venus Express - After eight years an exciting aerobreaking manouver is planned for the summer

 

Artemis - Twin probes sitting at the L1 and L2 lunar Lagrange points.

Lunar Reconaisance Orbiter - It's inital mapping program complete it continues to return new and challenging information

Chang'e 3 / Yutu - China's lunar lander and rover

 

Mars Oddysey - A NASA mapping orbiter that is still going strong

Mars Express - The ESA orbiter, still going strong after ten years. (Shame about Beagle 2.)

Mars Rovers - Spirit gave up the ghost in 2010, but Opportunity is still at work 3580 sols past expiry of warranty :)

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter - High resolution photos and studies of atmospheric water and dust

Curiosity - The largest rover ever landed on Mars, running well after one year and returning great data

Mars Orbiter Mission - India's venture into planetary exploration is en route

MAVEN - Due to arrive in September, it will study Martian atmosphere

 

Dawn - Currently en route from the asteroid Vesta to the dwarf planet Ceres as part of the program to investigate the formation of the solar system

WISE - Resurrected probe which will study/is studying asteroid belt and NEOs in infra-red

SOHO - An ESA craft that studies the sun, but has been excellent at discovering comets also

Rosetta - Another ESA craft that has visited two asteroids and is now on its way to a comet where one part of it will land . (Big eight hour burn to adjust velocity coming up today! Results tomorrow.)

Hayabusa2- A JAXA asteroid landing and sample return mission scheduled for launch this July

Osiris-Rex - Another asteroid landing and sample return mission scheduled for 2016 launch, this one by NASA

 

Juno - en route to study Jupiter

 

Cassini - the remarkable craft is still functioning. It just made its 101st flyby of Titan

 

New Horizons - En route to Pluto and beyond

 

Voyagers 1 and 2 - Still transmitting from distances of 127 and 104 Astronomical Units respectively.

 

 

 

 

[Buffy]

NASA announced today a program to work with a private group seeking to make contact with an old and no longer NASA funded space probe:

 

NASA has given a green light to a group of citizen scientists attempting to breathe new scientific life into a more than 35-year old agency spacecraft.

 

The agency has signed a Non-Reimbursable Space Act Agreement (NRSAA) with Skycorp, Inc., in Los Gatos, California, allowing the company to attempt to contact, and possibly command and control, NASA’s International Sun-Earth Explorer-3 (ISEE-3) spacecraft as part of the company’s ISEE-3 Reboot Project. This is the first time NASA has worked such an agreement for use of a spacecraft the agency is no longer using or ever planned to use again.

 

...

 

Launched in 1978 to study the constant flow of solar wind streaming toward Earth, ISEE-3 successfully completed its prime mission in 1981. With remaining fuel and functioning instruments, it then was redirected to observe two comets. Following the completion of that mission, the spacecraft continued in orbit around the sun. It is now making its closest approach to Earth in more than 30 years.

 

The goal of the ISEE-3 Reboot Project is to put the spacecraft into an orbit at   a gravitationally stable point between Earth and the sun known as Lagrangian 1 (L1).

 

Source: NASA Press Release 5/21/2014

 

 

 

If they do it once, they'll do it again. 

 

Who wants to run a space probe? :cheer:

 

 

Space Station extended until 2024; Death Star plans delayed, :phones:

Buffy

[Eclogite]

Re- the Rosetta Mission:

 

The Rosetta team reports that last night's orbit correction manoeuvre (OCM) – or thruster burn – was completed as planned, providing the first of three big orbital 'pushes' to get the spacecraft lined up for comet arrival in August.

 

The burn ran for 7hrs:16mins, one of the longest burns in ESA spaceflight history, and began as scheduled at 15:23 UTC (17:23 CEST). The OCM was programmed to deliver a relative change in speed with respect to comet 67P of 291 metres/second (m/s).

 

Two more 'big burns' are planned, on 4 June and 18 June; these will be followed by a series of six smaller burns until arrival at the comet.

 

Extracted from this site:

 

The probe is now less than 1,000,000 kms from the comet.