Posted by
Far_view on Monday, March 24, 2008 10:29:53 PM
The two Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity landed on Mars
three weeks apart in January 2004. They were designed for a nominal 90
martian day (or sol, to distinguish them from Earth days, a martian day
is called a sol) mission. Over the weekend, the Spirit rover passed
1500 sols. Over the course of their missions, Spirit and Opportunity
have survived software glitches, getting caught in sand drifts, two
martian winters, and a global dust storm that nearly cut off all their
solar energy. The biggest threat yet though comes from the government
agency that built and launched the rovers. Where NASA once had a solid
commitment to Mars exploration, Mars gets short shrift in the latest
budget. Those dollars that are being allocated to Mars exploration are
largely going to support the next Mars rover, the Mars Science Lab
(MSL). MSL has gone over budget and to support that mission, in NASA's
zero sum budget game, dollars are being diverted from the operational
budgets of existing missions- the orbiting Mars Odyssey and the rovers
Spirit and Opportunity. Recently, NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) has
been informed that $4 million will be taken out of the operating
budgets of both Mars Odyssey and the rovers (story
here).
This would essentially cripple both missions and could lead to one of
the rovers being turned off. This would be incredibly pennywise and
pound foolish. These spacecraft are all still operating and providing
excellent scientific returns. Just in the past year, the Spirit rover
uncovered a patch of silica-rich soil which
was certainly concentrated through the action of water- possibly in hot
spring similar to those in action at Yellowstone. The fact is though
that the origin of those silica rich soils is still a mystery. Further
exploration of the broader area surrounding where they were discovered
could uncover further clues to the early history of Mars. That chance
might not come though if these NASA-ordered budget cuts come to pass.
Write your members of Congress- ask them to restore operational funding
for the Mars Exploration Rovers and Mars Odyssey- don't let these
valuable assets be wasted.