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May 25, 2008: Ustream: Pre-Phoenix landing, live from JPL

Chat Log

03:26 ustreamer-16872 : QUESTION: Is it possible that NASA uses a special display for the many parameters that will be seen in the UHF data stream down to landing ?
03:27 grp : QUESTION: what is the expected lifespan of the lander?
03:27 newmars-cIclops : QUESTION: when will we get confirmation of events before cruise sep, eg Propulsion system pressurization?
03:27 ustreamer-58666 : QUESTION: Will the first solar array images show any part of the surface?
03:27 thomasb : QUESTION: how precise did the MERs and Pathfinder land with respect to their precalculated landing ellipses?
03:27 MahFL-1 : 90 days is the nominal mission timespan
03:28 Yoshi_3up-8311 : Testing.
03:28 madlolscientist-1 : Hi Emily!
03:28 akuo : QUESTION: Is JPL a circus yet?
03:28 hendric : I imagine there is a pool that will open up once landing is a success.
03:28 nkprev-1 : Hello, Emily!
03:28 MahFL-1 : they landed long
03:28 KStu : Hey everyone... we've just been at Doug's...
03:28 ustreamer-98536 : ....But center
03:28 MahFL-1 : hey
03:29 ustreamer-81356 : hear they may have rough landing
03:29 MahFL-1 : 56, yer, if you land on a big rock, its going to hurt
03:29 nkprev-1 : QUESTION: Missed the press conference. Is the trajectory now set in stone, or is a final correction possible?
03:30 hendric : newmars-Ciclops: Like I'll give her that one. :P 03:30 ustreamer-69028 : Good luck to phoenix!
03:30 MahFL-1 : its all on its own now nk 03:30 joshcryer : cIclops, haha 03:30 hendric : nk, last chance for a traj change was this morning.
03:30 MahFL-1 : no more commands are being sent untill after landing 03:30 nkprev-1 : Ban newmars...NOT appropriate!!!!!!
03:30 joshcryer : nk, he was joking.
03:30 nkprev-1 : Not cool.
03:30 KStu : QUESTION: how many Press are gathered there now? Are there more or less than came to watch the MER landings?
03:31 newmars-cIclops : nk - lighten up
03:31 nkprev-1 : Repeat: not cool.
03:31 surreyguy-1 : nkprev - I agree
03:31 hendric : Where are the peanuts?! :)
03:31 MahFL-1 : Emily is pretty hot :), much better looking than Doug !
03:31 TheBadAstronomer-1 : I cannot get stream
03:31 madlolscientist-1 : Any chance of waking up Phoenix next spring?
03:31 loonyman : Hi Emily, Lee from Sweden, I kknow NASA has said Pheonix is NOT looking for life, however, should there be life in its samples, will it be able to detect and recognise it?
03:31 hendric : Try the reload arrow next to the pause/play button?
03:32 ustreamer-98536 : Question: Will all three orbiters record doppler data to improve trajectory reconstruction?
03:32 KStu : QUESTION: have you heard of any plans to image the sky looking for optical effects around the Sun?
03:32 ustreamer-89796 : This is so exciting.. Thanks Emily for your blog and accurate and fast info!
03:32 hendric : Stu: Good Q!
03:32 imipak-1 : QUESTION: the radar turns on some time before the lander drops free from the backshell; why is that? What use is the radar data when it's attached to the chute?
03:33 joshcryer : KStu, you kinda stole my question. =)
03:33 TheBadAstronomer-1 : Ah, I'm in!
03:33 joshcryer : I was going to ask if they were going to make a sort of stop motion movie over a whole day.
03:33 KStu : Hey Josh, long time no read! :-)
03:33 Acw : Question: the two failed penetrators weren't mentioned during the press briefing when MPL's failure was mentioned. Any idea why this is?
03:33 joshcryer : KStu, hehe, heya. I saw your poem as read by Emily, really cool!
03:34 ZaphodBeeblebrox : Sounds like a circus alright
03:34 newmars-cIclops : QUESTION: why have you ignored my question?
03:34 Roby72 : Im sorry, have u answered the following already ?
QUESTION: Is it possible that NASA uses a special display for the many parameters that will be seen in the UHF data stream down to landing ?
03:34 ZaphodBeeblebrox : lol
03:34 ustreamer-69028 : QUESTION: Good work, Emily, greetings from Spain. What would be the BEST discoverings Phoenix could make?
03:34 ustreamer-98536 : Acw: Deep Space 2 considered as part of MPL loss.
03:34 KStu : Thanks Josh :-)
03:34 ZaphodBeeblebrox : Very Cool
03:35 ZaphodBeeblebrox : lol
03:35 nkprev-1 : QUESTION: How's the weather at the landing site, and how old is the data?
03:35 hendric : n-c: I send them, she chooses them. Probably becuase 30 minutes of listening to Emily go "I don't know" would be pretty darn boring.
03:35 newmars-cIclops : hendric ok thanks
03:35 ustreamer-47651 : Ciao
03:35 MahFL-1 : the weather is good
03:35 MahFL-1 : the sun is out
03:36 hendric : Roby: She just covered it.
03:36 ustreamer-21950 : QUESTION- will any images be returned by Phoenix as it descends to the Martian surface?
03:36 nkprev-1 : OK
03:36 Roby72 : ops I missed it
03:36 ZaphodBeeblebrox : Makes Sense
03:36 ZaphodBeeblebrox : Yeah
03:36 ustreamer-89796 : Q!: Give us a personal guess, how big chance it will be for a good landing.. 30-50% ?...
03:36 ustreamer-98536 : Emily: DS2 could communicate to MGS, and was designed to do that primarily
03:36 dotdk : QUESTION: Will MRO still try to use HiRISE to capture the parachute phase?
03:37 newmars-cIclops : QUESTION: will we get any more information from the spacecraft before crusie separation?
03:37 Timothy-Boulder : Was the problem with the Decent Camera fixed to allow it to take multiple images on decent, or will it only be able to take a single image due to the memory conflict problems?
03:37 ZaphodBeeblebrox : Question: Is The Champaign Chilling, just in Case Phoenix Discovers Life?
03:37 Roby72 : hendric could you give some info about it ?
03:37 nkprev-1 : I think the MARDI issue was actually some sort of data handling conflict with the navigation system.
03:37 ZeroOne : Unmanned Spaceflight had some news about MRO attmepting to capture Phoenix EDL images. No promises.
03:38 ustreamer-98536 : MARDI was in conflict with IMU unit system
03:38 hendric : Roby: JPL's been doing this for years, they got a special program writen for each lander to track engineering data.
03:38 ustreamer-11244 : Too bad.
03:38 newmars-cIclops : QUESTION: can you confirm that MRO will try to image Phoenix before landing?
03:38 joshcryer : That's a shame.
03:38 ustreamer-98536 : Newmars: Yes, as well as MEX!
03:39 newmars-cIclops : QUESTION: will they try to turn on the mic after landing?
03:39 hendric : As plain as a parachute on mars!
03:39 surreyguy-1 : Nc - she just said they won't
03:39 hendric : n-c: I've heard conflicting reports on the mic, mostly no.
03:39 pechisbeque : QUESTION: What's the nominal mission duration?
03:39 newmars-cIclops : surreygiy that's during the landing
03:39 ustreamer-58208 : QUESTION: How long is the mission expected to last in total?
03:39 joshcryer : Don't see why they couldn't before night time hits.
03:40 tstn : ciao emily lakdawalla mi chiamo gianni sono italian come si va 03:40 surreyguy-1 : nc - she said stays off during the mission 03:40 Roby72 : I mean a special display for public purposes, comparable to the launch coverage 03:40 MahFL-1 : night time is not for several months, the sun does not go below the hrizon 03:40 joshcryer : I know.
03:40 joshcryer : ie, it would be close to mission end.
03:40 hendric : Roby: No, not really.
03:40 loonyman : like here in sweden :-) 03:40 ustreamer-50833 : this chatroom is a head the nasa one in seriousness 03:40 joshcryer : Wouldn't hurt to use it at that point.
03:40 Roby72 : ok thx hendric
03:40 ustreamer-70239 : How warm will it get at the landing site?
03:40 ustreamer-50833 : loonyman: hello again /sundsvall 03:40 imipak-1 : Q: will the actual trajectory / landing point improve our model of polar-latitude atmospheric dynamics?
03:41 newmars-cIclops : thanks EL
03:41 loonyman : hi Sundsvall!!
03:41 ustreamer-50833 : hi :)
03:41 jay-8408 : QUESTION: Why did they go with pulsed thrusters?
03:41 nkprev-1 : QUESTION: Have any of the Mars orbiters modified their orbits to support Phoenix, and has anyone mentioned any ancillary effects on MER coverage?
03:41 thomasb : Question: with the sun not setting uring the mission, will they have enough power to operate phoenix 24,5 hours/day?
03:41 ustreamer-58144 : Emily! Greeting from spacEurope! You look beautiful! :-)
03:41 ustreamer-89796 : Outside Sundsvall, Sweden.. here too ;)
03:41 volcanopele : Emily: any word on when the HiRISE image of chute (assuming it is observed) will hit the ground? In other words, should I show up a work tomorrow to see it?
03:41 hendric : nk: I don;t know about MER, but I know Cassini had to replan.
03:41 MahFL-1 : i think they sleep some, to recharge the batteries/
03:41 nkprev-1 : Yeah, that wa DSN-related.
03:42 KStu : QUESTION: sopme of the most dramatic MER images have been taken with the Sun low in the sky... as the Sun will never set for Phoenix are the team planning some similarly dramatic pics?
03:42 volcanopele : 73047 is me
03:42 ustreamer-50833 : loonyman: i agree about emily and her voice...dudidu
03:42 ustreamer-50833 : 89796: outside? where? :)
03:42 surreyguy-1 : KStu - the sun will be low most of the time
03:42 volcanopele : 73047 is volcanopele (not sure why it doesn't show up as me)
03:42 MahFL-1 : in case of success lol, be more confident !
03:42 ustreamer-98536 : -50 deg c at daytime
03:42 loonyman : Question- A friend has asked me if its true they used cork in the manufacturing of the heat shield? Any ideas?
03:42 imipak-1 : Q: so (Emily) what's your gut sense of the probability of success/failure? Peter Smith said he had "high confidence" of getting imgs off the first Ody pass...
03:42 ynyralmaen-195 : yeah, but alcohol's officially banned at JPL! :)
03:42 newmars-cIclops : the thrsuters will warm it up a bit
03:42 nkprev-1 : Good question!
03:43 madlolscientist-1 : QUESTION: Is Phoenix landing above the Martian Arctic Circle?
03:43 surreyguy-1 : I see you as volcanopele
03:43 ustreamer-19784 : Wow....i agree. Emily is very pretty!
03:43 MahFL-1 : loonyman, yes cork is uded on the heatshield.
03:43 dragonsyoung : its ment to land on the ege of the artic
03:43 ustreamer-38632 : What is the latest estimate of the landing ellipse
03:43 hendric : C'mon, questions about Phoenix/mars ppl.
03:43 ustreamer-58208 : Are there any significant dust storms on mars at the moment that may interfere with the mission?
03:43 grp : QUESTION: what is the maximum velocity the lander can take on landing and survive
03:43 volcanopele : surreyguy-1: cool, on my screen it called me ustreamer-73something on my screen
03:43 nkprev-1 : Pulse thrusters conserve propellant.
03:43 MahFL-1 : no dustorms
03:43 loonyman : thanks Mahfl-1
03:43 Zvezdichko : QUESTION: When do we expect to have the first 360 degree full-color panorama?
03:43 ustreamer-50833 : aha emily is here, hello from sweden, nice live
03:44 ustreamer-98536 : Cheaper with pulsed than throttled.
03:44 surreyguy-1 : v-p - OK
03:44 nkprev-1 : Simpler design, too.'
03:44 ustreamer-50833 : will this livefeed be for the last 3 hours?
03:44 ustreamer-50833 : coming 3 hours*
03:44 KStu : QUESTION: will we see frost forming on the ground, even briefly, on some of the images?
03:44 ustreamer-50833 : whatever
03:44 paxdan-1 : no just 30 mins
03:44 joshcryer : 50833, almost over.
03:44 surreyguy-1 : Good question, KStu
03:44 ustreamer-38632 : What is the latest approximation of the landing ellipse?
03:45 MahFL-1 : i think we might see some frost
03:45 ustreamer-50833 : and every 30 min or? next is when?
03:45 MahFL-1 : you will have to watch nasa tv
03:45 ustreamer-89796 : Question: Why this particular landing point, why not even further north, more ice? better preserved ice?
03:45 ustreamer-50833 : yes
03:45 paxdan-1 : just this one 30 min session currently scheduled
03:45 nkprev-1 : just got it...she's in front of the Voyager mockup, isn;t she?
03:45 ustreamer-24959 : Surely the sun does set and rise during the beginning and end of the nominal mission. In the middle, around summer solstice, it stays up "all sol".
03:45 ustreamer-58144 : Don't know if this was asked but...will Phoenix be able to image the TPS mini-DVD? ustrax
03:46 KStu : no... the Sun will not rise or set until August I believe...
03:46 hendric : 24959: Is that a Q? Preface Q's with QUESTION ppl.
03:46 nkprev-1 : Rui!!!!!!!!!
03:46 MahFL-1 : the sun does not set until the autuminal equinox
03:46 ustreamer-50833 : yes "all sol" sucks, we almost got it here in middle sweden *it disturbs ones sleep* :)
03:46 volcanopele : emily: thanks, so I can enjoy my day off tomorrow
03:46 nkprev-1 : VP!!!
03:46 imipak-1 : Q: the landscape will be much flatter than for the MERs; how far away will the horizon be from the lander? And might we see the edge of the polar cap?
03:46 ustreamer-38632 : What is the latest approximation of the landing ellipse?
03:46 newmars-cIclops : IF it works ALL the way down
03:46 dragonsyoung : 10s black out in radio on entry
03:47 ustreamer-50833 : "the sun never sets for the phoenix" at least mythologial :P
03:47 ustreamer-50833 : logical err
03:47 volcanopele : nkprev-1: hey hey
03:47 loonyman : nice
03:47 ustreamer-3865 : QUESTION: Is MSL still on schedule?
03:47 ustreamer-24959 : In Finland at 70 degr. N lat the phase the sun is constantly over the horizon is "only" 73 days.
03:47 ustreamer-50833 : excuse my lie, it sets and then reborns haha
03:47 ustreamer-58144 : NICK!!! :-)
03:47 ustreamer-38632 : How much of the ground around the lander will be covered by the solar panels and not viewable?
03:48 Roby72 : QUESTION: Is it possible that the parachute and backshell should be visible from the landing site ?
03:48 nkprev-1 : QUESTION: Given that this is a very active area with respect to the rest of Mars, are they planning to image specific surface features over the mission to look for things like frost upheavals during the summer thaw?
03:48 MahFL-1 : there is cork
03:48 Zvezdichko : QUESTION: Is it possible for SSI to capture some astronomical images of the Earth, Phobos, stars? Do they plan to do this?
03:48 newmars-cIclops : use /nick name -- to set your name
03:48 ustreamer-50833 : is it possible the lander will survive the winter?
03:48 ustreamer-11244 : I think cork was really used.
03:48 pcnovice91 : will we ever live on mars in the future??
03:48 jp-710 : QUESTION: Is there any corrective maneuver that can be done during the thruster powered descent to detect and avoid large boulders or steep slopes?
03:48 ustreamer-50833 : i havent gotten into that earlier, is it possible? :)
03:48 palmin : Cork was mentioned in one of the NASA videos
03:48 MahFL-1 : 710, no, it just lands.
03:49 ustreamer-38632 : QUESTION: How much of the ground around the lander will be obstructed by the solar panels?
03:49 MahFL-1 : its luck where it ends up
03:49 hendric : 50833: Asked already
03:49 ZeroOne : And on the front of it is this heat shield -- this saucer-looking thing that has about a half inch of what's essentially cork on the front of it, which is our heat shield. Now this is really special cork, and this cork is what's going to protect us from the violent atmospheric entry that we're about
03:49 paxdan-1 : QUESTION: will you be eating peanuts during EDL?
03:49 hendric : 38632: Added toQ
03:49 danwri : Will telemetry from the cruise stage continue to be reported?
03:49 ustreamer-50833 : hendric: what was the answer?
03:49 ustreamer-50833 : hehe
03:49 ustreamer-50833 : my is: no
03:49 surreyguy-1 : LOL paxdan
03:49 ustreamer-50833 : :)
03:49 ZeroOne :
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/podcasting/jpl-phx20080327.html :
cork
03:49 newmars-cIclops : QUESTION: And if the answet to the previous is yes, what type?
03:49 hendric : Can someone else answer 50933?
03:49 ustreamer-44030 : 444 viewers! Go Emily! Now *that* is a background! Voyager!!! :)
03:49 grp : thanks
03:50 hendric : n-c: what previous Q?
03:50 Zvezdichko : thank you, Emily for answering my question about 360-degree panorama 03:50 hendric : Your welcome. :) 03:50 loonyman : thanks V 03:50 dotdk : Is it Voyager in the background?
03:50 loonyman : thanks zero one
03:50 KStu : you're doing a good job hendric :-) 03:50 ustreamer-44030 : Oh yes it is!!
03:50 ustreamer-66779 : Presumably the rocks make it pretty hot, Emily. Will they melt the ice? Will this help the mission? Could the rockets kill any life in the ice this way?
03:50 imipak-1 : Q: is there a risk of the rasp or shovel contact-freezing in place?
03:51 ustreamer-99006 : who's that guy walking behind you?
03:51 hendric : 99006: c'mon, be serious
03:51 nkprev-1 : Hey!!! TPS DVD will be on cam!
03:51 grp : Q: will there be a dowload of the dvd?
03:51 TPrime : the phoenix team is twittering:
http://twitter.com/MarsPhoenix
03:51 ustreamer-50833 : when is the first image feed to be broadcasted? probably this was aksed earlier too
03:51 ustreamer-87936 : any reason they can't turn the mike on near the end of the mission?
03:51 ustreamer-38632 : QUESTION: Compared with the other landing sites we've seen, where would you rate the phoenix site on a blandness scale?
03:51 ustreamer-83834 : Sorry if this has been asked already. is there any chance Phoenix would survive a winter and do more science next Martian spring?
03:52 MahFL-1 : 834, a very slim chance
03:52 ZeroOne : Everyone with peanuts in the shell for luck, crack one. Crack.
03:52 nkprev-1 : Good question about the mike; was wondering if it might be deferred until then as risk aversion.
03:52 joshcryer : What's the peanut reference? :)
03:52 ustreamer-87936 : thanks
03:52 hendric : Josh: Go buy peanuts RIGHT NOW and start eating.
:)
03:53 ustreamer-20232 : QUESTION: I understand that detecting life is not part of the Phoenix mission, but is there the possibility that during the sample analysis that life could be detected?
03:53 ustreamer-50833 : like cells?
03:53 ustreamer-66779 : if the ice is so hard, would melting it help?
03:53 ustreamer-98536 : The heat shield is SLA-561
03:53 KStu : Josh, you MUST have some peanuts !! It's a superstition! :-)
03:53 MahFL-1 : yes, it has a powerfull microscope
03:53 joshcryer : KStu, haha
03:53 ustreamer-67528 : lol
03:53 KStu : no, seriously... Emily, please exxplain about the peanuts
03:53 ustreamer-50833 : i wonder how hard the wind blows
03:53 ustreamer-32233 : thanks for the liveblog, it's really interesting to listen to (first-yeah ugrad in UK)
03:54 surreyguy-1 : I can hear fine
03:54 joshcryer : She has abou 8 minutes so prolly doesn't have time for peanuts. :(
03:54 alcaray : loud and clear
03:54 ustreamer-66779 : it's fine thanks Emily
03:54 ustreamer-38632 : QUESTION: Compared to the other mars landing sites we've seen, how bland do you think the phoenix site will be?
03:54 E-TARD-1 : you have a good mic
03:54 hendric : 632: already sent
03:54 ZeroOne : Peanuts: a JPL good-luck tradition
03:54 Roby72 : thx Emily
03:54 loonyman : sounds good here
03:54 ZeroOne : byebye
03:54 joshcryer : Yeah, I found it.
03:54 surreyguy-1 : Thank you
03:54 nkprev-1 : Thank you, Emily!
03:54 KStu : Thanks Emily, another good job :-)
03:54 ustreamer-66779 : Thank you Emily!