A lot to get right: Feb 18 Landing on Mars

[rcjordan]

https://www.space.com/perseverance-mars-2020-rover-landing-video

[littleman]

I'll be watching.

[ergophobe]

Wow. That is some amazing engineering.

Have you read Andy Weir's book The Martian? It's a really interesting dive down into the minute details of how you might survive a disaster on Mars.

[rcjordan]

>watching

Here's how to watch NASA's Perseverance rover land on Mars on Thursday | Space
https://www.space.com/mars-rover-perseverance-landing-webcasts

[buckworks]

>>v Andy Weir's book The Martian?

Read it, and saw the movie too. The movie is a better-than-average rendition of the story IMHO.

I think I enjoyed the movie more because I had read the book first.

I recommend both.

[littleman]

>I think I enjoyed the movie more because I had read the book first.

Same.  I also like how the book got started too, as a fictional blog post that grew into a book after much input from his followers.

[rcjordan]

This just showed up on G News

Mission Control Live: NASA Lands Perseverance Mars Rover (clean feed) - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPrbJ63qUc4

[littleman]

Non-clean feed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gm0b_ijaYMQ

[rcjordan]

You beat me, LM. Here's another one with NASA commentators

LIVE: NASA's Perseverance rover attempts to land on Mars! - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sty0e6l3Y3Y

[rcjordan]

I'm running all 3 of the above feeds. So far, LM's looks to be the best for visualization of where it is in the landing sequence.

[littleman]

Interesting that they have so many feeds with variations.

[rcjordan]

I thought the same.  The one you posted is mirrored on the nasa.gov/live site.

<+>
Note the difference in the number of users.

[rcjordan]

<++>
Yours is the most broadcast TV-like.

[rcjordan]

I caught a glimpse of the rover wheels. They looked to be hub-powered. Yep, they are.

Also found a great site on the rover itself

https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/spacecraft/rover/wheels/

<+>
She's nuclear!

The power source is called a "Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator" or MMRTG for short. The MMRTG converts heat from the natural radioactive decay of plutonium into electricity. This power system charges the rover's two primary batteries. The heat from the MMRTG is also used to keep the rover's tools and systems at their correct operating temperatures.

[littleman]

360 view

Hub wheels just make sense.  I think all the 21 century rovers have used them.