Estimated record production cost, Superman Returns, $260 million. Mars Pathfinder launch and operation, estimated: $265 million.

Pretty good. Different generations and dollars, but pretty good.

MER missions, 2 rovers, estimated $820 million. Cheaper by the pair. $410 million per. About a movie-and-a-half.

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The MERs could effectively be considered separate projects, given that they're not exactly tripping over each other in terms of what they're studying.

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The last time I felt a warm fuzzy feeling, I was informed by my doctor that it was just gas.

Certainly. I still have to think their unit cost is cheaper because we sent two. I think a single MER would have cost more than half the pair -- for purposes of comparing movie production costs and Mars rovers.

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The second rover added about 50% - from about $600m to about $850m - very very roughly.

Doug

Phoenix landing site woes

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Mars mission clears hurdle
Phoenix project proceeds despite cost overruns

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Everything I need to know I learned through Googling.

I hear it will be launched by the Delta II, a number of instruments from the cancelled 'Scout' and 'Surveyor-2001' will be making a comeback

Something of a mix of missions there. Phoenix is the first of the Mars Scout program missions (every other opportunity - in the $400M ish range)

It takes the 'chassis' of the cancelled 2001 lander - but the instruments are mainly ones designed for the failed 1998 Mars Polar Lander. The instruments for the 2001 Lander ( called APEX.. Athena Precursor Experiment as a Mossbauer, Mini-TES and Pancam ) ended up as MER's Athena Payload .

Doug

Thanks for clearing that up

Undergraduate paves way for NASA Mars mission

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I am SO excited about this mission. I have just sent my application form for the Student Interns Program. Hopefully, nothing will go wrong, and I will be picked to spend a year and a half on this project. Yeah!!

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Alex

Dark Comedy Theory. Where c is coffee, s is spew, v is velocity, and w is how much windex used to clean LCD monitor. When I put the sentence through the equation, it unified all 4 forces above. I'm hoping someone here can help me express the precise mathematics into an elegant, simple equation. My next step is to post it in ATM, and then hopefully submit if for refereeing.
-Serenitude

Wow , I feel sorry for Venus Lander It would be awful to live like that

On the other hand I cannot wait for those Martian Polar pics , I have waited far too long for them , and I believe it WILL revolutionize our understanding of Mars.

It will NOT fail and is only the first of the scout missions that will lead us to the greatest adventure in space exploration history , Another giant leap and a human on Mars!

$

I heard that during the phoenix mission a dvd will be leave on mars, and if it is found to the spacies of mars then it will be more remarkable and amazing one.

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Did you put your name on it ?

Probably. Not sure any more. I've put my name (and my friends') on lots of these thing.

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Phoenix has arrived at KSC

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Emily sure is great for keeping up to date with this stuff, are any baut members going to be at Canaveral for the launch ?

I heard that a "dvd" will be place on mars of "space enthusiasts of the world" by embossing their names on this dvd? during this mission, the phoenix mission is going to leave a special dvd on mars ?

Planetary Society: Phoenix DVD

(But, it's too late to add a name now.)

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thanks, I am too late to add the name in the dvd. if the same dvd found to alien of mars, then will they capable to read it!!

sunil

What I learnt from the news that most probably in coming months the journey will start towards mars by a phoenix mission, I think it will remarkably great achievement by the concerns (viz. canandian space agency, Arizona states University, nochatel University Switzerland, nasa, ) combine. I have also heard that a CD will be leave on the surface of the mars, its a great idea.

So what we are expecting from this mission on mars? a. water search, b. oxygen search, c. dwelable place or not.

Today the world's eyes are raised towards this important mission.

How many days it will take to reach there on mars! This is the sort of mission which kept the people(the concerns) more accurate, more early after the last mission, this will assist in performing the goal which was set by them towards the different researches.

The scientists and team as whole there are greatly doing the things differently and this commendable for all of us.

sunil

Attached Images

The phoenix on mars.jpg (10.9 KB, 11 views)

It's not exactly a new idea. Among the earliest, second-sol images Mars Exploration Rover Spirit sent back to Earth were images of the CD carried on its lander base: from Spirit :: Panoramic Camera :: Sol 002

Many big missions carry/will carry/carried CDs/DVDs/microchips, by recollection, among them: Beagle II, Cassini, Dawn, Deep Impact, Huygens, Mars Polar Lander, MER-A, MER-B, New Horizons, Phoenix, SELENE, Stardust.

The idea probably goes back to the Pioneer plaques and Voyager record, though not all major missions did it.

I don't know what we are expecting, but the mission page describes the mission:

Cruise-phase page:

For details, see University of Arizona/NASA Phoenix Mars Mission Pages.

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Threads merged.

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(Just) One Image Planned During Descent of Phoenix

===

Phoenix Mission Page: 28 days to launch

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Possible landing site chosen?

Andrew Brown.

Attached Images

732280-Untitled-1copy.jpg (90.2 KB, 8 views)

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"I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.

Green Valley? The more excitable woo-meisters won't need false colors to incorrectly conclude Mars is lush with plant life if NASA sends a lander to Green Valley.

January, 2007, Planetary Society Planetary News: A Green Valley for Phoenix:

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Hi there, hopefully the woo-woos will not latch onto that. I do not know why that valley in Scandia Colles is called Green Valley?

It will be anything but green. Minus 140 Celsius Winter, frigid cold still in Summer, very little atmosphere.

No doubt the woo-woos will make capital out of it.

Unfortunately.

Andrew Brown.

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"I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.

Hi Andrew

It's not listed in the planetary gazetteer as a formal name. So I assume it is somebody's idea of irony.

Incidently there is a crater on Mars called Green, after the British astronomer Nathan Green (1823-1899). It's at 52.7 degrees S and 8.4 degrees W. Next to Roddenberry.

Jon