Latest news with #JetPropulsionLab
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA's Curiosity Rover Grows More Powerful After 13 Years On Mars
Happy 13th birthday to the Curiosity rover, which landed on Mars on August 6, 2012. Ah, I remember when I turned 13: just starting to shave, voice cracking like ice in spring, and learning how to multitask so that my tiny nuclear reactor would last longer. Sadly, Curiosity will never learn to shave, but it has just figured out how to do that last bit. After all this time in the dust of another planet, the rover is literally getting better. NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab, which operates the Curiosity mission, has pushed a new software update to the six-wheeled adventurer. The main purpose is to improve the lifespan of its multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator (MMRTG), which isn't a video game genre, but an advanced form of radioisotope power system (RPS). This is a miniaturized plutonium power plant, which is pretty amazing. Trouble is, even plutonium runs out eventually, and it's not like Curiosity can just pop over to the garage to pick some more up (and swap out its wheels while it's at it). Every time Curiosity does anything at all, it uses electricity. Driving the wheels, scanning for a route, taking samples that one day should return to Earth, phoning home -- it all takes a little juice, and recharging the batteries means expending plutonium. Once it's all gone, Curiosity becomes a future Martian museum piece, nothing more. So making the seven-foot-tall guy more efficient is pretty critical, as it will extend the life of the MMRTG and, thus, Curiosity itself. How to do that? By doing what every 13-year-old juggling homework and social media does: multitask. And then take more naps. Read more: Call Me A Luddite, But These Modern Features Only Seem To Make Cars Worse The Quest For More Naps Curiosity has a lot to do, but all of that is programmed by the good people back at JPL. So a day's mission might be, say, drive over there, take some photos, upload those photos back to Earth, then drive somewhere else. Each of those steps is planned out in sequence, and Curiosity fulfills them one at a time. Sensible, but also hugely inefficient. So, crazy idea: what if Curiosity could upload the photos during the drive to the second location? That reduces the total amount of time Curiosity even has to be on to accomplish the mission, meaning less total power draw. This, critically, means more naps, a priority for us all. In fact, before this update, the rover would do each of these tasks for an allotted amount of time, regardless of whether it accomplished the objective early. Maybe the drive was a bit smoother than estimated, and it arrived a little early. The old Curiosity would still serve out the scheduled time. The updated Curiosity can recognize when it's done its job for the day and then power down. The more power saved, the less the plutonium gets used up, the more years Curiosity will last. The Miniaturized Nuclear Reactor NASA has actually been using RTG systems since the 1960s. The Apollo missions used them, and the two Voyager spacecraft sailing off into the universe are still being powered by them today. The current version being used by Curiosity and its sibling Perseverance is "multi-mission," meaning the same design could be used in space or in atmosphere. The main principle at work here is that if two conductive elements are at vastly different temperatures, electricity flows. Inside the device are plutonium pellets, which generate immense heat when desired. Outside the device, well, it's Mars! It's cold. You get the cold part for free. There's a reason this stuff is still working in the void of space. That allows for 110 watts from 10.6 pounds of plutonium to charge the rover's batteries. The device itself is pretty sturdy, which it has to be, in case there's an accident. No one wants a science mission to turn into a dirty bomb. In fact, back in 1968, a rocket carrying a satellite with an RTG crashed into the sea. The generator was successfully recovered, intact and then reused on a future satellite. How long will Curiosity's MMRTG last? As with all things on Mars, it's hard to predict. Maybe future updates will make it even more efficient; maybe something will go horribly wrong tomorrow. But when it first landed, NASA was only hoping the rover would make it two years. It just hit its 13th birthday. Here's to the next 13, buddy. Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox... Read the original article on Jalopnik.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA's Curiosity Rover Grows More Powerful After 13 Years On Mars
Happy 13th birthday to the Curiosity rover, which landed on Mars on August 6, 2012. Ah, I remember when I turned 13: just starting to shave, voice cracking like ice in spring, and learning how to multitask so that my tiny nuclear reactor would last longer. Sadly, Curiosity will never learn to shave, but it has just figured out how to do that last bit. After all this time in the dust of another planet, the rover is literally getting better. NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab, which operates the Curiosity mission, has pushed a new software update to the six-wheeled adventurer. The main purpose is to improve the lifespan of its multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator (MMRTG), which isn't a video game genre, but an advanced form of radioisotope power system (RPS). This is a miniaturized plutonium power plant, which is pretty amazing. Trouble is, even plutonium runs out eventually, and it's not like Curiosity can just pop over to the garage to pick some more up (and swap out its wheels while it's at it). Every time Curiosity does anything at all, it uses electricity. Driving the wheels, scanning for a route, taking samples that one day should return to Earth, phoning home -- it all takes a little juice, and recharging the batteries means expending plutonium. Once it's all gone, Curiosity becomes a future Martian museum piece, nothing more. So making the seven-foot-tall guy more efficient is pretty critical, as it will extend the life of the MMRTG and, thus, Curiosity itself. How to do that? By doing what every 13-year-old juggling homework and social media does: multitask. And then take more naps. Read more: Call Me A Luddite, But These Modern Features Only Seem To Make Cars Worse The Quest For More Naps Curiosity has a lot to do, but all of that is programmed by the good people back at JPL. So a day's mission might be, say, drive over there, take some photos, upload those photos back to Earth, then drive somewhere else. Each of those steps is planned out in sequence, and Curiosity fulfills them one at a time. Sensible, but also hugely inefficient. So, crazy idea: what if Curiosity could upload the photos during the drive to the second location? That reduces the total amount of time Curiosity even has to be on to accomplish the mission, meaning less total power draw. This, critically, means more naps, a priority for us all. In fact, before this update, the rover would do each of these tasks for an allotted amount of time, regardless of whether it accomplished the objective early. Maybe the drive was a bit smoother than estimated, and it arrived a little early. The old Curiosity would still serve out the scheduled time. The updated Curiosity can recognize when it's done its job for the day and then power down. The more power saved, the less the plutonium gets used up, the more years Curiosity will last. The Miniaturized Nuclear Reactor NASA has actually been using RTG systems since the 1960s. The Apollo missions used them, and the two Voyager spacecraft sailing off into the universe are still being powered by them today. The current version being used by Curiosity and its sibling Perseverance is "multi-mission," meaning the same design could be used in space or in atmosphere. The main principle at work here is that if two conductive elements are at vastly different temperatures, electricity flows. Inside the device are plutonium pellets, which generate immense heat when desired. Outside the device, well, it's Mars! It's cold. You get the cold part for free. There's a reason this stuff is still working in the void of space. That allows for 110 watts from 10.6 pounds of plutonium to charge the rover's batteries. The device itself is pretty sturdy, which it has to be, in case there's an accident. No one wants a science mission to turn into a dirty bomb. In fact, back in 1968, a rocket carrying a satellite with an RTG crashed into the sea. The generator was successfully recovered, intact and then reused on a future satellite. How long will Curiosity's MMRTG last? As with all things on Mars, it's hard to predict. Maybe future updates will make it even more efficient; maybe something will go horribly wrong tomorrow. But when it first landed, NASA was only hoping the rover would make it two years. It just hit its 13th birthday. Here's to the next 13, buddy. Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox... Read the original article on Jalopnik.
Forbes
22-05-2025
- Science
- Forbes
NASA Perseverance Rover Strikes A Selfie With Mars Dust Devil
NASA's Perseverance took this selfie on May 10 along the rim of the Jezero crater. Unbothered. In its lane. Focused. Dusty. Fabulous. NASA's Perseverance Mars rover took some time away from its science work to snap a superb selfie from its perch on the rim of the Jezero Crater. The rover wasn't alone. A peppy dust devil danced in the background. NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab shared two versions of the rover selfie on May 21. The portraits show the rover parked on a rocky hill. In one shot, the rover 'looks' at the camera with its head-like mast. In the other, it looks toward the ground where a small hole marks a spot where the rover drilled for a rock sample. The photobombing dust devil can be seen in the distance as a light-colored puff near the middle of the image. 'The well-illuminated scene and relatively clear atmosphere allowed us to capture a dust devil located 3 miles to the north in Neretva Vallis,' said Perseverance imaging lead Justin Maki in a statement. The small dark hole in the rock in front of the rover is the borehole made when Perseverance ... More collected its latest sample. The small puff of dust left of center and below the horizon line is a dust devil. NASA shared an annotated version of the image pointing out the dust devil, the sample hole, an American flag on the rover and the rover's tracks behind it. Dust devils are common on Mars. NASA's rovers keep an eye out for dust devil activity. Perseverance even captured extraordinary footage of a larger dust devil consuming a smaller one in January. The rover snapped the selfie on May 10 to celebrate its 1,500th sol on the red planet. A sol is a Martian day. It works out to about 24 hours and 39 minutes, so a sol is slightly longer than an Earth day. This is Perseverance's fifth selfie since it arrived on Mars in early 2021. The rover landed inside the Jezero Crater and has since worked its way up to the crater rim. It's spent about five months exploring an area nicknamed Witch Hazel Hill. The region has delivered some geological surprises, like these 'shocking spherules' Perseverance investigated in March. Taking a selfie on Mars is no easy feat. Perseverance used its Wide Angle Topographic Sensor for Operations and eNgineering camera to snap 59 images that could be stitched together into the full selfie. WATSON is located at the end of the rover's robotic arm. WATSON took three more snaps for the shot where Percy looked down toward the ground. The Perseverance team had to plan out each shot. 'That means we had to make 62 precision movements of the robotic arm,' said Perseverance imaging scientist Megan Wu. 'The whole process takes about an hour, but it's worth it. Having the dust devil in the background makes it a classic. This is a great shot.' Selfies aren't just for fun. The rover team uses them to assess the rover and monitor how much dust has gathered on the vehicle and its instruments. Mars is notoriously dusty. NASA's Opportunity rover and InSight lander succumbed to dust-covered solar panels. Unlike its dearly departed helicopter companion Ingenuity, Perseverance doesn't rely on solar. It's essentially powered by a nuclear battery. Perseverance received a thumbs-up health report from its team. 'After 1,500 sols, we may be a bit dusty, but our beauty is more than skin deep,' said Art Thompson, Perseverance project manager. Thompson said the rover has all the power it needs, that all systems are in the green and that Perseverance is set to 'feed scientific discoveries for years to come.' That's worth a celebratory Mars selfie.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA Powers Down Equipment on Voyager Probes as They Struggle for Life
There's more bad news for NASA's Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft. The twin space probes left the solar system in 2012 and 2018 respectively, and are currently over 15 billion and 13 billion miles from Earth. And their energy sources, on-board radioisotope power systems, are decaying quickly, forcing the space agency's Jet Propulsion Lab to shut down even more of the spacecraft's scientific instruments. According to a new statement, Voyager 1's cosmic ray subsystem experiment was shut down last month, while Voyager 2's low-energy charged particle instrument will be shut down before the end of March. It's yet another sign that the spacecraft, which have been blasting through space for almost half a century, are on their very last breath. NASA has already had to be extremely conservative with the available power. The radioisotope thermoelectric generators, which use radioactively decaying plutonium-238 isotopes as a direct source of power, are losing roughly four watts of power each year, which means their days are numbered. "The Voyagers have been deep space rock stars since launch, and we want to keep it that way as long as possible," said JPL Voyager project manager Suzanne Dodd in the statement. "But electrical power is running low. If we don't turn off an instrument on each Voyager now, they would probably have only a few more months of power before we would need to declare end of mission." The team has been focusing on the spacecraft's scientific instruments that have been studying the solar system's heliosphere, a protective bubble formed by the Sun's activity that separates us from interstellar space. Scientists were already forced to turn off Voyager 2's plasma science instrument as a result of degraded performance back in October. The spacecraft's low-energy charged particle instrument, which will be shut down on March 24, has been relying on a stepper motor that's already vastly exceeded the amount of activity it was tested for. By the time it's deactivated, according to NASA, the motor will have completed more than 8.5 million steps — compared to just 500,000 it was tested for in the 1970s. "The Voyager spacecraft have far surpassed their original mission to study the outer planets," Voyager program scientist Patrick Koehn explained. "Every bit of additional data we have gathered since then is not only valuable bonus science for heliophysics, but also a testament to the exemplary engineering that has gone into the Voyagers — starting nearly 50 years ago and continuing to this day." Scientists are eager to eke out as much life out of the spacecraft as possible — but power is quickly running out. "Every minute of every day, the Voyagers explore a region where no spacecraft has gone before," said Voyager project scientist Linda Spilker in a statement. "That also means every day could be our last." More on the spacecraft: The Voyager Probes Are Dying
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
We're So Screwed, Even That "City Killer" Asteroid Doesn't Want to Destroy Earth Anymore
Earlier this year, a roughly 200-foot near-Earth asteroid, dubbed 2024 YR4, made major headlines, with NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab warning that there was a small chance it could impact our planet on December 22, 2032. Over the following weeks, the probability of a collision grew steadily, eventually reaching 3.1 percent — or about a 1-in-32 chance — according to figures from NASA's Center for Near Earth Object Studies last week. But fears over a space rock wiping out one of the most populous cities on Earth amounted to nothing. According to the JPL's "more precise models of the asteroid's trajectory," scientists came up with an updated impact probability only 0.004 percent. "There is no significant potential for this asteroid to impact our planet for the next century," NASA wrote in a recent blog post. "The latest observations have further reduced the uncertainty of its future trajectory, and the range of possible locations the asteroid could be on December 22, 2032, has moved farther away from the Earth." In short, not even a near-Earth asteroid was willing to finally put us out of our mystery. At least we could soon get an even more precise glimpse of the slacker asteroid. Scientists are hoping to use NASA's groundbreaking James Webb Space Telescope to zoom in on the space rock next month. Intriguingly, according to NASA, there's still a small 1.7 percent chance 2024 YR4 could impact the Moon on December 22, 2032, which could result in a massive collision that's visible from Earth. "There is the possibility this would eject some material back out that could hit the Earth, but I highly doubt it would cause any major threat," University of Arizona asteroid hunter David Rankin told New Scientist earlier this month. With a collision with Earth exceedingly unlikely, NASA is still excited to use the opportunity to "test planetary defense science and notification processes," according to the agency's latest update. And the space agency already has some practice when it comes to fending off errant space rocks. In September 2022, NASA smashed its Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft into a tiny asteroid called Dimorphos. The groundbreaking mission saw the space rock be knocked off its trajectory, releasing copious amounts of dust and loose rock in the process. Fortunately, it doesn't look like the agency will have to do anything like with 2024 YR4, though. More on the space rock: Killer Asteroid Could Be Headed for Some of the World's Most Populous Cities
