NASA Extends the Mars Helicopter’s Mission

AI Transcript | NASA Extends the Mars Helicopter’s Mission | SpaceTime S25E35 

[00:00:00] Stuart: This is space-time series 25 episode 35 for broadcast on the 23rd of March, 2022. Coming up on space time. NASA extends flight operations for its Mars. Ingenuity helicopter work on the international space station continues as normal. Despite the growing tensions with the Russians in the ground and Astro launches three new satellites from Alaska, all that and more coming up on space-time

welcome to space time with Stuart Gary

NASA extended fight operations of its MAs ingenuity helicopter through to at least September. The tiny tissue box size rotor copter, which landed in the red planet. Jezreel crater attached to the mass perseverance Rover more than a year ago was only ever meant to undertake five proof of concept. Test flights, the associate administrator of NASA science mission directorate.

Thomas says that less than a year ago. We didn't even know if powered controlled flight of an aircraft on another world was possible, but ingenuity, his efforts have now clearly made history and the annals of air and space exploration. In the months ahead, history's first aircraft to operate from the surface of another world will support perseverance his upcoming science campaign, exploring the ancient river Delta of jazz row crater in the ongoing search for signs of ancient microbial life on the red planet.

Along the way. It'll continue testing its own capabilities to support the design of future Mazda vehicles. That's his announcement comes on the heels of the rotor cup. This 21st successful flight. The first of three needed to get the helicopter to cross the Northwest portion of a major region known as seater and reach its next staging area.

Ingenuity. His new area of operations will be entirely different from the modern, relatively flat terrain it's been flying over since its first mission back in April last year. Several kilometers wide and formed by an ancient river. The fan shaped Dota rises more than 40 meters above the crater floor.

It's filled with jagged cliffs, angled surfaces, projecting boulders, and Sanford pockets that could stop a Rover in its tracks, or even up into helicopter, trying to land the Delta promises to hold numerous geologic revelation. Perhaps even the proof necessary that determined that microscopic life once existed on mass beads of years ago, upon reaching the Delta engineer, city's first order of business will be to help determine which of two dry river channels perseverance should take when it's time to climb to the top of the Delta.

Along with routing assistance, uh, data provided by the helicopter will also help the perseverance team assess potential science targets. Ingenuity will also be called a bond image, geologic features, which are either too far away or too difficult for the six rules perseverance Rover to get to a loss, a scout landing zones and caching sites for the Mars sample return me.

The fly towards the end of the decade. It'll collect the samples now being assembled by perseverance for a turn to worth the GEs Roe river Delta campaign will be the biggest challenge. Ingenuity is faced since its first flight on Mars. To enhance its chances of success. Mission managers at NASA jet propulsion laboratory in Pasadena, California increasing the size of the mission team.

And they're also uploading new flight software geared to improve operational flexibility of flight safety. And several of these upgrades have already led to reduced navigation errors during flight, which increases both flight and landing safety. A recent software change already on the road. A copter frees ingenuity from its previously programmed maximum altitude of 15 meters.

Increasing altitude will result in incremental increases in both air speed and range. A second upgrade allows ingenuity to change its S bit as the flies and another enables it to better understand and adjust to changes in terrain texture during. Future software upgrades will include adding terrain elevation maps to its navigation filter and a landing hazard avoidance capability.

But before aerial reconnaissance of the Dota region can begin ingenuity needs to complete its journey to the area. It's a complex flight of around 350 meters, and includes a sharp bend at its cost to avoid a large hill. After that, the team will determine whether two or three more flights will be needed in order to complete the crossing of Northwestern SITA.

The first experimental flight on another pilot took place on April the 19th, 2021 and lasted just 39.1 seconds. After another four flights, six more minutes in the air and traveling a total distance of 499 meters. NESAD transitioned, ingenuity into an operational demonstration phase testing its ability to provide a narrow dimension to the perseverance.

And with the completion of flight 21, the radio copter has now logged over 38 minutes of air time and traveled some 4.64 kilometers. This report from this TV NASA's curiosity Rover, which has been climbing Mount sharps since 2014 is about to drive up onto a broad sloping surface called the green hue pediment.

This will allow scientists to fast forward, perhaps millions of years in Mars history and study the history of liquid water written into these different layers of rock over in Jezza. The perseverance Rover is getting ready for a new destination and science campaign. And it's consistently setting driving records on Mars by relying more on self-driving software that allows the Rover to avoid obstacles without having to consult a human on earth.

Perseverance, we'll be pushing north in an area where ancient river flowed into a body of water. It left sediments in a shape called a Delta. The Rover will collect more rock samples. The ingenuity Mars helicopter will support. Perseverance is upcoming science campaign. The helicopter has been given the green light to try to keep flying OD Mars for the next few months, upgrades to its navigation.

Software will improve flight and operational safety. This is space-time still the county. Work on the international space station continues despite growing tensions on the ground and Astra successful launches, three satellites from Alaska. Oh. That a mall store to come on space time.

Massive says that despite the growing tensions of a Russia's invasion of Ukraine, astronaut mark van de wool returned to work from the international space station as planned aboard a Russian Soyuz capsule. At the end of the month, Vanda hay launched as part of expedition, 64 65 and 66 aboard the Soyuz MSAT in spacecraft back on April the ninth, 2021.

It's mission. We'll break the record for the longest Everspace fight by an American astronauts with 353 days in space is slated to return to worth a board. The soil is landing on the steps of Kazakhstan unmatched 30th will then be immediately flown back to the United States, uh, bought a Gulf stream jet.

Meanwhile, despite the growing tensions between NASA and the Russian federal space, NCLR's cosmos operations of board. The Albany, our posts are continuing to go smoother. In fact two NASA astronauts have just completed a seven hour extra vehicular activity or Eva, which is NASA. Speak for space walk in order to prepare a site for the installation of another pair of new solar arrays for the space station.

And Shari is now out of the hitch, the

[00:08:14] Alex: toolbox

[00:08:15] Stuart: and Kayla we'd like you to fairlead at the base of the sea dispar. Nice job. You're looking good. That straight bag is flying formation with you corner adjustable down, work on the other one.

[00:08:28] Alex: That'd

[00:08:28] Stuart: be adjustable in one corner. The VA wasn't without its drama with one of the tethers used by the astronauts failing to retract it.

And one of the crew having difficulties, finding an anchor footing during the Ava, which included installing brackets and strengths to support the new solar array. Baron is now out of the space station. Parent is and I'm working on by anchor hook is attached to the Ord airlock theory. It's closer to lock black on black.

I have a good Stacey tother path and I'm going to work on Rogers anchor hub.

Oh, for sure. I can get to, oh, so your anchor hook is attached to the airlock app. Hearing close fighter locked black on black. When ready? You have to go to release your waste. Heather, I've got to go to

Okay, copy that. And Kayla, please turn on your head. The concerns of Evanta Hayes returned to worth came when Washington and other Western nations began imposing sanctions on Russia over the criminal. This decision to invade the Ukraine and it's callous targeting of civilians. NASA's assurances about Vanda Hayes ride came despite Roz cosmos has chief Dimitri Rogersons threats to abandon him in space.

Rogosin warn that sanctions will and cooperation aboard the space station. Placing the opening outposts featuring doubt. Moscow is already canceled a lucrative soleus commercial launch for a British company. One web in retaliation to the sanctions. Meanwhile, Russian work is European space ends his crew spaceport and French Guiana have been ordered to leave the facility with all Soyuz flights from the complex.

Now. Moscow's also shut down. It's telescope. I bought the joint Russian and German spec, the space observatory, the joint Roscosmos AC XO Mars mission to the red planet. Slated for launch in September has also been canceled and Russia's withdrawn its team who are servicing the Iris 180 rocket engines used by America on the Atlas five launch vehicle.

All in all. We are certainly living in interesting times. This is space time. Still to come Astra launches three new satellites into orbit from Alaska and later in the science report, evidence that people pushing homeopathy are failing to show studies with negative results or that are more sort of. Um, space time,

extra space have successfully launched three small satellites into orbit. The LV triple zero nine launch vehicle was flown from the Pacific spaceport complex on Kodiak island. Last. The mission has been delayed by day because of bad weather in lightning vehicles on internal control. Rocket has taken control of the countdown and everything is on track for Lyft, the upper stage tanks.

It pre lift off first stage fuel tank pressurizing N water on 8 7, 6 5, 4.

LV triple zero nine. It's on its way to space in just under a minute T plus 45. Still looking good. If the vehicle pitching down range south from Kodiak, Alaska towards the orbit and a beautiful contrail as the vehicle ascends towards space. Yeah. Through the area of maximum dynamic pressure or max Q the point of maximum stress on the vehicle.

Everything looking good, we have about 90 seconds remaining. And the first stage portion of coming up, we'll be main engine cutoff or AMECO, which is the shutdown of the five first stage engines prior to stage separation plume from the first stage of expanding as the Rocky gets higher in the atmosphere with less atmospheric pressure T plus two minutes into the flight LV, triple zero nine, good truck and done range.

And in just about 30 seconds, we have. String of milestones on quick succession, you'll have the first stage engines shut down and main engine cutoff, and then the fairing separation and stage separation and upper stage ignition steps will happen in very quick. Succession shaped

[00:12:50] Alex: you can't confirm option received.

Option

[00:12:51] Stuart: received vehicles left the gate there's for separation

[00:12:54] Alex: stage separation

[00:12:56] Stuart: and upper stage engine here is coming from the Astro team as this. Portion of our flight milestones have been accomplished. We have about five minutes of second stage flight before our payloads are deployed payloads or board the mission which was called space flight Astro.

One included the offset zero spacecraft for the nonprofit Portland state aerospace society, which will test different ways of monitoring the global distribution of high altitude Cirrus clouds. Also a board was Indiana based manufacturer near spaces as for crossover payload, which remained attached to the rockets upper stage and measured space, radiation and other space, environmental conditions.

There was also a third payload on the mission, but it was kept classified. The flight was an important success. Following last month's failure during a launch from Cape Canaveral, which caused the company stocks to plummet the company eventually traced that problem to a 40 payload fairing and software problems, which prevented the rocket from recovering when it began tumbling out of control.

It's time.

Tom Meditech. Another brief look at some of the other stories making, using science this week with a science repo. And you study is confirm that people pushy, homeopathy arrive at early showing studies, which have positive results or not being truthful about the scientific outcomes. The findings reported in the British medical journal shows reporting buyers with those conducting homeopathy trials, having poor adherence to the declaration of Helsinki, which requires Charles to be registered and all their results to be disseminated.

From their findings. Some 38% of homeopathy trials remained on published and 53% remain unregistered. Furthermore, a quarter 25% of registered homeopathy trials altered or changed their primary outcome scientists say the findings suggest to concerning lack of scientific and ethical standards in the field of homeopathy and a very high risk of reporting biases.

A new study has shown that kids who spend more time in front of their computer screens at displaying an increased risk of both behavioral and mental health issues. The findings reported in the journal of the American medical association are based on a systematic review and metadata analysis of 87 Australian and international studies.

Scientists looked at patterns of internalizing symptoms, such as depression and anxiety, as well as externalizing symptoms, including aggression and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. And they compared those to the amount of screen time the kids were consuming. The researchers say these studies can prove that more screen time causes these behavioral and mental health issues, but it suggests that more research is needed to fully understand the.

Including more as such in the type of content children are engaging in when they pick up their iPad. And he study shows that people who use illegal amphetamines, commonly known as speed or go eat a five times more likely than non drug users to experience psychosis. The findings reported in the journal.

Evidence-based mental health follows a 10 year study by Taiwanese scientists. The background rate of psychosis among non drug users was 77 psychotic episodes for every 100,000 people. While amongst speed. It was 468 per 100,000 people. The increased risk was seen among all age groups, but especially among women and people with prior arrest for speed position, these psychotic episode campuses for years, and up to 15% of users.

The authors looked at data from the Taiwan listed drug issue database and the national health insurance research database between 2007 and 2016. And they identified some 74,601 speed users and 298,404 non-drug users matched for age and sex as a comparison. Speed users also had poor health on the pression.

They were 2% versus 0.4% for normal people. Anxiety was 0.9%, three times greater than those in the normal community. Ischemic heart disease was 1.3% as opposed to 0.8% for the general. Cardiovascular disease was 0.8% compared to 0.45% for non-drug users. And in terms of stroke, it was 1.3% for speed users versus just 0.7% for non drug users.

We'll explain the big week in tech with new software updates of both apple iOS and Samsung. With the details with joined by technology at it's Alex from ity.com.

[00:17:54] Alex: Apple has launched iOS 15.4, as well as

And, uh, I'm Paul TV lists for iPhone users to have an iPhone 12 or 13. You can now set it up so that when it does the face ID, it can unlock. Even if you're wearing a mask. Now I shut this up and tried it out. And. Brilliantly. So you would have to fumble for, you know, typing in the numbers or you have to be an apple watch owner if you want to unlock on you're wearing a mask.

So this is a very cool feature. Hopefully Android smartphone mag is figuring out how to copy it to your benefit. They use it as well mask wearing. Uh, around the world has different places I've needed to. So that's quite handy. And, uh, if you're an iPad user and you've got, I've had OSU St. Point four and Macalester Monterey 12.3, the latest versions just launched.

You can now use a thing called universal control to control multiple Macs for multiple iPads connected to the same iCloud account from the one Mac keyboard and mouse or trackpad. But I tried this out. I have not had an either side of my Mac book. And I could just easily move the mouse across to the left iPad or to the one on the right.

And it works. It works like magic. It's really cool to be able to scroll up and down, use threatening gestures, stop talking away and you see it all happening on the iPad. You can also copy and paste the texts and you can drag crawls across as well. So that was not a little magical feature that apple has a lot.

There are third party applications that can sort of do similar things. One is called synergy, which allows me to be. The mouse and keyboard from a windows PC in control of Mac or vice versa. But normally when I have the mouse on the other screen of the other computer, there's sort of this little noticeable, so a little delay and annoying, whereas with universal control, it's smooth, very smooth.

And apple is widely calling this a beta feature that clearly it's still to be improved in that. So they've been more liberal in its use of the beta tag, which seems like maps or other things has done in the past when it wasn't quite ready for prime time. But apple launched this feature when it announced iOS 16 and it was meant to come out when I was 16 arrived, it's taken a few extra month until I paddle with 15 points.

It doesn't work an iPhone, but it's arrived and it's magical little feature I really

[00:20:08] Stuart: enjoy using. And what's the big news with Samsung?

[00:20:11] Alex: Well, the launch, the new Q led TVs. If you go to samsung.com, you can see all the different range of TVs. And that's when we went to new a series phones with multiple cameras in the back to compete with the iPhone se and all the other, uh, Uh, Android smartphone makers, but if you've got the Samsung S 22, you will have something called one UI 4.1.

Now a lot of the oldest Samsung devices just got the upgrade to Android 12, but they came with the UI 4.0 overlay, the 4.1 overlay, Samsung skin he's coming to hold the Samsung galaxy S 21 series. All the Samsung galaxy eight series. The tab is. Yeah. And also things like the F 20 series, the Zed poles three in the foot three and various notes series devices and all the way down to the S 10 series.

So this UI gives you expert role photography capability. So if you're a real photography fly with the photos, you'll get that. There's the object arises allows you. I drew a circle around something and a picture. Maybe you've got a picture of two people walking down a beach and somebody else's sort of firebombed, or you can now raise them.

And other features like Google, which is Google's version of FaceTime. And you can now share your screen with other Google or users at the same time when you're on a voiceover video call, the same way that you can do that with FaceTime and the screen sharing that's there. So a lot of new features coming to all of the Samsung devices.

It's a shame that I don't come on the same day for all the fines at the same time, you need to be. IOS to get that some instant capability across all the devices, but in the world of Android, Samsung relatively quick to get their updates out. And this will be a welcome update, giving new features to all the firms.

And then we'll be rolling out over

[00:21:53] Stuart: the next few months. And that's Alex from it. y.com.

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