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

[troutman]

Enormous 360-degree Curiosity color panorama from "Rocknest", sols 64-74 - October 21, 2012


https://planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/a...860x677px2.jpg

[SinceDay1]

It might just be me, but Mars looks like every picture I've ever seen of Afghanistan.

[T@T]

Originally Posted by SinceDay1

It might just be me, but Mars looks like every picture I've ever seen of Afghanistan.

There's poppy fields and suicide bombers on Mars?

Seriously though. It looks like a lot of places on earth including the desert area's south east of Calgary.

[bc-chris]

Originally Posted by SinceDay1

It might just be me, but Mars looks like every picture I've ever seen of Afghanistan.

mars pics always make me think of.....

[troutman]

The Planetary Society


Huge self-portrait of Curiosity on Mars!
http://www.planetary.org/blogs/emily...-portrait.html

[worth]

http://www.npr.org/2012/11/20/165513...sc=tw&cc=share

[Traditional_Ale]

Originally Posted by worth

http://www.npr.org/2012/11/20/165513...sc=tw&cc=share

Well I just got the chills.

[troutman]

"This data is gonna be one for the history books. It's looking really good,"

Grotzinger says it will take several weeks before he and his team are ready to talk about their latest finding.

Curiosity is a tease.

[Mike F]

I expect the discovery will be announced December 21. . . . As the Mayans predicted.

[worth]

http://science.time.com/2012/11/20/a...history-books/

JPL spokesman Guy Webster made just this point today in an e-mail to TIME: “As for history books, the whole mission is for the history books,” he wrote. That’s not to say he rules out the possibility of truly big news. “It won’t be earthshaking,” he said in a later phone call, “but it will be interesting.”

And as for the scoop the NPR reporter and HuffPo announced? “John was excited about the quality and range of information coming in from SAM during the day a reporter happened to be sitting in John’s office last week,” Webster wrote. “He has been similarly excited by results at other points during the mission so far.”



Read more: http://science.time.com/2012/11/20/a...#ixzz2Crht1WED

[polak]

Hahaha I'm happy I didn't get my hopes up.

Too bad. No organic matter for you!

[Hemi-Cuda]

they always do this. a scientists view of "big news" is not the same as an average person's

[Puppet Guy]

Originally Posted by worth

http://www.npr.org/2012/11/20/165513...sc=tw&cc=share

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

they always do this. a scientists view of "big news" is not the same as an average person's

Not to mention that "news" is basically the product that they are selling. If they are short on news or the news insn't good enough, it affects their image which in turn will affect future funding.

Scientists will sometimes hype up even the mundane for this reason.

[Knut]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

Not to mention that "news" is basically the product that they are selling. If they are short on news or the news insn't good enough, it affects their image which in turn will affect future funding.

Scientists will sometimes hype up even the mundane for this reason.

Actually, they are likely extremely excited about the most mundane because they have devoted a large chunk of the last decade on their particular facet of this mission.

If you were ever in a University Lab setting you could see the excitement in a Professor at the most minuscule discovery.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by Hesla

Actually, they are likely extremely excited about the most mundane because they have devoted a large chunk of the last decade on their particular facet of this mission.

If you were ever in a University Lab setting you could see the excitement in a Professor at the most minuscule discovery.

Not only have I been employed in research at the university level, but I also worked in public research facilities outside of school settings. I know that they are expected every once in a while to release news in order to keep up optics. Especially when it is time to look for funding. Seeing the money side of research is one of the things that made me lose interest.

[T@T]

A big "OMG" moment for space enthusiasts may be coming!

Curiosity rover may have discovered something "really interesting." John Grotzinger, principal investigator for the Curiosity rover mission, revealed to NPR that "This data is gonna be one for the history books. It's looking really good."

The data in question come from soil that was analyzed by an instrument suite on the rover called SAM, the Sample Analysis at Mars. This chemistry set is equipped to look for compounds of carbon, such as methane, as well as hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. These would suggest at least the possibility that life could have once existed there.
But Grotzinger would not tell NPR exactly what about the latest results could be so "earthshaking" (should we say "Mars-shaking"?). And it will be several weeks before the public may know anything further about the matter, NPR reported. The scientists don't want to say anything prematurely, before they're sure they know what they're seeing.

"The scientists want to gain confidence in the findings before taking them outside of the science team. As for history books, the whole mission is for the history books," he wrote in an e-mail. "John was excited about the quality and range of information coming in from SAM during the day a reporter happened to be sitting in John's office last week. He has been similarly excited by results at other points during the mission so far."

http://lightyears.blogs.cnn.com/2012...ews/?hpt=hp_t3

Anyone care to guess what they may have found? Carbon?,or perhaps a Mars dude holding a sign "leave us alone USA"

[puckluck2]

Holy crap I can't believe nobody posted that sooner.

[Daradon]

Re Big News from Curiosity: Yeah as I read that article I kinda got the same feeling. It might be huge for the scientific community and extremely important for them and the process, but I get the feeling it wouldn't be the sort of thing that would make the world sit up and take notice. Not at least with the things our world seems to be more concerned about. :/ Exciting for a scientist is very different than the average joe, rightly or wrongly.

I doubt it's going to be something like evidence of (former) life or anything like that.

[T@T]

Originally Posted by Daradon

Re Big News from Curiosity: Yeah as I read that article I kinda got the same feeling. It might be huge for the scientific community and extremely important for them and the process, but I get the feeling it wouldn't be the sort of thing that would make the world sit up and take notice. Not at least with the things our world seems to be more concerned about. :/ Exciting for a scientist is very different than the average joe, rightly or wrongly.

I doubt it's going to be something like evidence of (former) life or anything like that.

Somewhat true, but say they came out and said Curiosity has found nucleic acids(or any building block of life) in it's samples,99% of people probably wouldn't blink an eye but because of electronic media today just about everyone would know it means Mars once had life within 24 hours.

For the record I doubt very much they found something of that ilk but since they already found traces of oxygen, carbon monoxide, methane and water I'm extremely interested what they found that's so exciting to scientists.