Engineers are beginning to consider the possibility that NASA's Mars rover Spirit, stuck in soft soil since May, might never rove again. They have been studying the situation and trying different approaches to free Spirit, but nothing has worked.
Power is also becoming a problem. Martian dust storms have swept over the rover's position, coating Spirit's solar panels in dust and limiting their ability to harvest solar energy. Of course, more than once during the mission, Martian winds have also swept dust off a rover's solar panels, giving new life. Presumably, that could happen again, but Spirit would still be mired in the soft soil.
If Spirit does remain a stationary outpost until it stops working altogether, that shouldn't take away from its remarkable performance. Designed to last 90 days in the harsh Martian environment, it has in fact operated for well over five years.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment