Mars Rover "Curiosity" Landing Soon

[Maybelater]

After an 8 1/2-month voyage through space, NASA's souped-up Mars spacecraft zoomed toward the red planet for what the agency hopes will be an epic touchdown.

The fiery punch through the tenuous Martian atmosphere at 13,000 mph Sunday night marks the beginning of "seven minutes of terror" as the Curiosity rover aims for a bull's-eye landing inside a massive crater near the equator.

The latest landing attempt is more nerve-racking than in the past because NASA is testing out a new routine. Curiosity will steer itself part of the way and end on a dramatic note: Dangling by cables until its six wheels touch the ground.

That's the plan at least.

Read More: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/...4a57a4efa55da9

Anyone know of public viewings of the landing in Calgary?

[Maybelater]

[GorG]

There is a pretty good BBC horizon episode on the whole mission.

[kevie88]

I hate to say it but I'm leaning towards crash n' burn on this one. I REALLY hope it makes it but it's just such an insane mission! Gutsy one for Nasa.

[GoChris]

I think it will make it. I tried the NASA Xbox game where you try to land it, and it wasn't that hard. Sure I could have been closer to the target, but it was hard to wreck it. Well...I did damage it pretty good on the first try so...hmm.

[Maybelater]

Originally posted by GoChris
I think it will make it. I tried the NASA Xbox game where you try to land it, and it wasn't that hard. Sure I could have been closer to the target, but it was hard to wreck it. Well...I did damage it pretty good on the first try so...hmm.

I'm basing my whole idea of this mission around this post

[Agent_Oorange]

Originally posted by GoChris
I think it will make it. I tried the NASA Xbox game where you try to land it, and it wasn't that hard. Sure I could have been closer to the target, but it was hard to wreck it. Well...I did damage it pretty good on the first try so...hmm.

Awesome lol.

It is streaming on the NASA JPL site tomorrow: http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/participate/ and on the JPL Ustream channel: http://www.ustream.tv/nasajpl

It is pretty fucking bad ass, I hope it makes.

[se7en]

this is sweet! How did I miss this?!?!

[Maybelater]

Originally posted by se7en
this is sweet! How did I miss this?!?!

It hasn't landed yet...

Suppose to be landing 1:30AM EST, so about 3:30AM. Might try and stay up to watch it live.

[BigMass]

Originally posted by Maybelater


It hasn't landed yet...

Suppose to be landing 1:30AM EST, so about 3:30AM. Might try and stay up to watch it live.

11:30 brah

[J-hop]

Originally posted by GoChris
I think it will make it. I tried the NASA Xbox game where you try to land it, and it wasn't that hard. Sure I could have been closer to the target, but it was hard to wreck it. Well...I did damage it pretty good on the first try so...hmm.

haha, I assume you are being sarcastic but for interests sake the only numbers I could find to use were in August 27, 2003 at the closest point to earth in its orbit of the sun Mars was about 56 million kms from earth. At the speed of light ~3x10^8 m/s that means (assuming the transmission travels at the speed of light) there would be about 187seconds of delay time on the signals the mars rover would be sending back, which is about 3 minutes so essentially the team on earth won't know things were a success until after its happened, no video game controls here!

[Maybelater]

Originally posted by BigMass


11:30 brah

lol embarrassing....

http://www.nasa.gov/externalflash/ma...ity_news3.html

[WithTheLightsOn]

Well, less than an hour left! In the meanwhile, for anyone interested NASA made this cool 3D feature that allows you to simulate the landing, as well as explore the solar system moving in real time:

http://eyes.nasa.gov/

[elite]

almost time...hopefully all goes well!

[Wakalimasu]

touchdown

[GoChris]

Told ya.

But seriously, that's pretty cool. Images coming already, that's nuts.

[ZEDGE]

Sweet!

[kevie88]

Absolutely awesome. Incredible news for Science.

[ZEDGE]

Got goosebumps watching that.. crazy.

[BigMass]

fresh images coming in from movie Lot 4 :p