JPL BLOGS
Inside Views on Outer Space
Hear from scientists, engineers and other experts as they offer a fascinating look at JPL missions, science and history.
Slice of History | July 5, 2017
Mars Pathfinder Rover Team, 1994
In December 1994, a group of Mars Pathfinder team members gathered for a photo with the Sojourner Rover model.
In December 1994, a group of Mars Pathfinder team members gathered for a photo with the Sojourner Rover model. They were working on rover technology development efforts about two years before the anticipated launch date.
On February 1, 1995, Mars Day was held on the JPL mall – an event for JPLers, schoolchildren, and visitors. The Office of Mars Exploration sponsored presentations, booths, and demonstrations of technology from Mars Pathfinder and Mars Global Surveyor. Mars Exploration Program Manager Donna Shirley said, “We wanted people from other projects and those who aren’t involved in our office to see what we’re up to, what kind of technologies we’ve developed. We’re excited about what we’re doing and we wanted to share that excitement.”
If you would like to help the Archives staff identify people in this photo, please see the partial list at https://pub-lib.jpl.nasa.gov/docushare/dsweb/Services/Document-2749 (click on title to open PDF document).
For more information about the history of JPL, contact the JPL Archives for assistance. [Archival and other sources: Collection JPL508, various issues of Universe, photo index, Allen Sirotta, Brian Wilcox, and David Braun.]
TAGS: MARS, PATHFINDER, ROVER, TEAM, 1994
Slice of History | February 2, 2015
Lunar Roving Vehicle Prototype
In 1964, at least two companies were working under contract to JPL on a Surveyor Lunar Roving Vehicle Study: Bendix Corporation Systems Division, and General Motors Corporation Defense Research Laboratories. This photo shows a prototype General Motors rover, one of several different approaches that were studied to determine their capabilities, limitations, and their impact on overall spacecraft design and performance. Twelve different spacecraft configurations were studied in detail, with variations in weight, power systems, communication method, and spaceframe size.
The final design of the Surveyor 1 through 7 lunar landers did not include a rover. NASA sponsored other lunar rover studies during the 1960s, with a variety of sizes and technical capabilities, and Apollo 15 astronauts became the first to drive a Lunar Roving Vehicle on the moon, during their 1971 mission. JPL continued to develop robotic spacecraft and rovers and, in 1997, landed Mars Pathfinder and its Sojourner rover on the red planet.
This post was written for “Historical Photo of the Month,” a blog by Julie Cooper of JPL’s Library and Archives Group.
TAGS: HISTORY, MOON, SPACECRAFT, TECHNOLOGY, ROVER
JPL | December 11, 2009
Over the Hills and through the Sand: Six Years of Driving on Mars
I almost didn't get to drive the rovers.
As one of the five developers of the software used to build the command sequences and rehearse and visualize the rover activities, I really wanted to be one of the people using it in flight. Unfortunately, only three members of the team were selected to be Rover Planners (a job title we believe was chosen in place of Rover Drivers to make the job sound very boring and reduce competition for it). I was not one of them.
I was originally slated to be a downlink analyst looking at the telemetry from the rover to assess the driving and arm operations. This entailed months of training to learn how to run somebody else's software, a much more difficult task than using your own. Fortunately for me, and unfortunately for someone else, a position opened up on the Rover Planner team and I was transferred over. This entailed more months of training to learn the procedures, but the fuse was very short since Spirit was careening towards its landing. The fact that I knew the software tools already was the saving grace that allowed me to be ready to go on landing day.
Looking back on these six years, I'm tired, but amazed, when I think about how much we've accomplished and continue to accomplish. During the prime mission, I remember hearing Steve Squyres say how much we would like Spirit to go explore the hills in the distance but that we would never get there. Well, we have driven to the top of those hills and down the other side.
I remember when Opportunity drove into Purgatory and the Rover Planners immediately said that we needed to back out of the sand dune. After months of testbed activities and review, the decision was made to back out of the sand dune. I can remember looking over at Scott Maxwell, another Rover Planner, and saying to each other "This is so cool!!" (We still say that).
Some of my favorite memories are of giving talks to school kids about what I do, though one of my saddest was being asked by one of the kids, an honor student, if the moon landings were faked. I especially enjoyed calling up Car Talk and asking the guys how to keep our electric vehicle running through the winter on Mars. I laugh when I think about a recent talk I had with Scott when the right front wheel of Spirit seemed to work again after four years of being dragged around. Scott said he didn't know if we were driving with six wheels or only five. Immediately I jumped in, Dirty Harry-style, with, "I know what you're thinking punk. Are we driving with six wheels or only five? To tell the truth, I don't know myself. The question you have to ask yourself is, 'Do I feel lucky?' Well, do ya', punk?"
As we work on getting Spirit out of the current sand trap, I feel manic-depressive about our chances. One day I am sure we will have no problem but the next day I am equally convinced that all is lost. This is about the toughest situation we have ever had to get out of. When we are stuck, it seems as if we are always running out of daylight, which translates to power. It happened at Tyrone, it happened at Tartarus, and it has happened at Troy.
Hmmm, maybe we should stop giving names to locations that start with T.
TAGS: SOLAR SYSTEM, MARS, ROVER, OPPORTUNITY
