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W4DPH > SAT 13.07.03 12:59l 54 Lines 2050 Bytes #999 (0) @ AMSAT
BID : ANS-194.02
Read: GUEST
Subj: Waiting for Opportunity to Arrive
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Sent: 030713/1049Z @:W4DPH.#TPA.FL.USA.NOAM #:63916 [CLW] FBB $:ANS-194.02
From: W4DPH@W4DPH.#TPA.FL.USA.NOAM
To : SAT@AMSAT
AMSAT News Service Bulletin 194.02 From AMSAT HQ
SILVER SPRING, MD. July 13, 2003
To All RADIO AMATEURS
BID: $ANS-194.02
All of the world's spacecraft that were supposed to begin their journey
to Mars this year are on their way.
NASA's second rover, Opportunity, flew into space from Cape Canaveral
Air Force Station at 11:18 p.m. Monday.
"We're still cautiously optimistic so far," NASA Administrator Sean
O'Keefe said after the launch.
The rover still has 305 million miles left to fly in its seven-month
coast to the red planet.
On Tuesday afternoon, it was about 200,000 miles away from Earth, not
quite as far as the moon. On Jan. 25, it is scheduled to enter the
Martian atmosphere and land on the surface, cushioned by a nest of
airbags. Its final resting place will be a location called Meridiani
Planum, a site observed to harbor the mineral hematite. This mineral
frequently forms in the presence of water, making it an intriguing
place for geologists to study through the rover's eyes.
As of 9 a.m. Tuesday, Opportunity's twin rover, Spirit, had flown 47.9
million miles. It will aim for Gusev Crater Jan. 3. Gusev Crater has a
channel running out of it, and scientists believe it may have held a
lake.
Meanwhile, the European Space Agency called its Mars Express spacecraft
last weekend to make sure everything was humming along properly. Mars
Express with the Beagle 2 lander launched from Russia in early June. It
will try to make its first science measurements later this month.
Japan's Nozomi spacecraft is not faring as well. It took a hit by
radiation from a solar flare, and it is unclear how well it will work
once it reaches Mars. It launched from Japan in 1998 and is taking the
scenic route to Mars because it used up too much fuel.
NASA's next launch to Mars won't be until 2005, when the planets are
close again. The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter will try to find water
beneath Mars' surface from orbit.
[ANS thanks Florida Today for the above information.]
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