Mars Rover Scheduled To Land Tonight At 11:31pm MST- Update- Landed!

[zamler]

NASA is something like 0.4% of the total budget, it makes no sense to chop out a few hundred million IMO. Even if they diverted 1% of military spending to NASA, it would be incredible what they would do with it. NASA has a 70% success rate putting a working craft on Mars, everyone else slightly above zero.

[Sidney Crosby's Hat]

Originally Posted by MrMastodonFarm

Speaking of this... the CNN coverage late last night was hilarious. The chubby talking head going on about "how long" we'll have to wait for images, and then almost complaining we might not see any tonight.

We are getting pictures... from MARS!... 17 minutes is just too long.

That's hours faster than it's taken NBC to get pictures from London!

[Azure]

Originally Posted by T@T

To be fair the USA is having a tough time, Curiosity is on the ground with the funding in place for the next 2 years,I'm not sure where the cuts were made but I'm sure it wont bother Curiosity's mission.

Did Obama cut out another mission or cut 200 million from useless stuff that's been done over and over like the reconnaissance orbiter?

The sad part is that NASA is being cut because the US refuses to reform their entitlement spending, and cut back how much they spend on the military.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by zamler

NASA is something like 0.4% of the total budget, it makes no sense to chop out a few hundred million IMO. Even if they diverted 1% of military spending to NASA, it would be incredible what they would do with it. NASA has a 70% success rate putting a working craft on Mars, everyone else slightly above zero.

IIRC, this mission is $1 B over budget; total is now $2.5 B.

[troutman]

Briefing on now:

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

With Curiosity now safely on the surface of the Red Planet after a spectacular entry, descent and landing in Gale Crater, NASA's Mars Science Laboratory begins primary mission of discovery and exploration.

The spacecraft continues to send back images of its landing. A news briefing is scheduled for 1 p.m. EDT today.

[Flash Walken]

It really is astonishing just how well this whole event went.

[zamler]

Originally Posted by troutman

IIRC, this mission is $1 B over budget; total is now $2.5 B.

Military spending exceeds 1 trillion per year, so about half a days worth of the military budget.

[FlamesAddiction]

I think this is a great acheivement and really cool. I can't wait to start seeing more pictures, but it is a total luxury. If times are tough and something needs to be cut, it's one of the first things that should be considered in my opinion.

[zamler]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

I think this is a great acheivement and really cool. I can't wait to start seeing more pictures, but it is a total luxury. If timse are tough and something needs to be cut, it's one of the first things that should be considered in my opinion.

It's truly sad if you really believe that. Space exploration is one of the most important things humans have ever done, the ripple effect of the technology has been incredibly profound.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by zamler

It's truly sad if you really believe that. Space exploration is one of the most important things humans have ever done, the ripple effect of the technology has been incredibly profound.

shhh your common sense is not needed here.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by zamler

It's truly sad if you really believe that. Space exploration is one of the most important things humans have ever done, the ripple effect of the technology has been incredibly profound.

I'm not saying that it should be ended completely. In the same vein as my original comment, when times are good, I think the budget should be inflated.

Human civilization will do fine if social and economic situations call for a reduced scope for a few years. The technology ripple effect won't cease or even slow down significantly when you look at it on a larger time scale.

[Cowperson]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

I think this is a great acheivement and really cool. I can't wait to start seeing more pictures, but it is a total luxury. If times are tough and something needs to be cut, it's one of the first things that should be considered in my opinion.

That's what "they" were saying, almost word for word, in the late 1960's/early 1970's during the moon landings as well.

Basically its a plea to live life to the lowest common denominator instead of daring to dream or achieve.

There's a balance there somewhere. And we move forward as a result.

Cowperson

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

I think this is a great acheivement and really cool. I can't wait to start seeing more pictures, but it is a total luxury. If times are tough and something needs to be cut, it's one of the first things that should be considered in my opinion.

why? as stated before, NASA's budget is tiny compared to so many other areas of the US government. if you shaved just 0.02% off of the US military budget, that would be more than enough to fund everything that NASA is doing/wants to do

the way that the US government is looking to cut spending is absurd. the rational way to cut spending of any sort is to look at the largest expenditures first and then work your way down. they seem to be looking at all of the little stuff first while ignoring the huge holes in the budget that could actually make a difference

[Nehkara]

This is going to be very ranty, but it needs to be said.

NASA needs to be left alone.

What needs to be cut is the US military in all its forms. They need to bring all their troops home from all over the world (the US maintains a permanent foreign force of ~400,000 troops worldwide), drastically draw down their military forces, and reduce expenditures on weapons research (considering they are decades ahead of any other country as it is).

It is mind boggling that NASA is being cut when the US military is so bloated and takes up such an enormous amount of money. They are so far ahead of every other country in the world militarily that it is ridiculous.

/rant

[photon]

More is spent on pet food than NASA.

I know some people find the evolved instinctual superficially human like seemingly emotion based interactions of non-sentient poop machines more emotionally fulfilling than unraveling the mysteries of the universe... but they shouldn't.

[zamler]

I don't see it as a rant at all, but the honest truth.

[Joborule]

So what makes this rover so much more significant than the other two that were there first, Spirit and Opportunity? Or is it not and it's just carrying out new tasks?

[DownInFlames]

In a nutshell Curiosity is looking to see if conditions exist, or ever existed, for life on Mars. The other Rovers were sent to explore the surface, and Curiosity will do that too, but with a more focused mission.

[nik-]

Originally Posted by Joborule

So what makes this rover so much more significant than the other two that were there first, Spirit and Opportunity? Or is it not and it's just carrying out new tasks?

It's way larger and therefore able to traverse rougher terrain. It also uses a power cell that produces electricity from radioactive decay as opposed to solar panels. Also a lot more equipment.

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by Joborule

So what makes this rover so much more significant than the other two that were there first, Spirit and Opportunity? Or is it not and it's just carrying out new tasks?

the other rovers were very sophisticated RC cars. this one is almost the size of the vehicles the astronauts drove on the moon, with far more instruments than any of the other rovers to date