The twin Mars rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, have had their mission extended by 18 months, spokespeople from NASA revealed yesterday.
The two vehicles have been operating on the Martian surface for over 14 months already. This extension will give them almost three years of surveying and scanning the red planet. Dr. Ghassem Asrar, deputy associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, says:
“The rovers have proven their value with major discoveries about ancient watery environments on Mars that might have harbored life. We are extending their mission through September 2006 to take advantage of having such capable resources still healthy and in an excellent position to continue their adventures.”
NASA’s release goes on to say:
The rovers have already completed 11 months of extensions on top of their successful three-month prime missions. “We now have to make long-term plans for the vehicles because they may be around for quite a while,” said Jim Erickson, rover project manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
Erickson cautioned though, “Either mission could end tomorrow with a random part failure. With the rovers already performing well beyond their original design lifetimes, having a part wear out and disable a rover is a distinct possibility at any time. But right now, both rovers are in amazingly good shape. We’re going to work them hard to get as much benefit from them as we can, for as long as they are capable of producing worthwhile science results.”
This is certainly good news for NASA when you consider some of the setbacks and cessation of funding scenarios they have gone through. The resilient rovers have been the one thing NASA has been able to hang their hat on lately.
Murdok | Breaking eBusiness News
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