NASA Succeeds in Banging Mole With a Shovel
RandomFactor writes:
For those tracking the twisting tale of the NASA Mars InSight Lander's plucky heat probe nicknamed 'the mole' - there is some good news! NASA reports:
A bit of good news from #Mars: our new approach of using the robotic arm to push the mole appears to be working! The teams @NASAJPL/@DLR_en are excited to see the images and plan to continue this approach over the next few weeks. ' #SaveTheMole
FAQ: https://t.co/wnhp7c1gPT pic.twitter.com/5wYyn7IwVo
- NASA InSight (@NASAInSight) March 13, 2020
The mole is a 16-inch-long (40-centimeter) spike equipped with an internal hammering mechanism that relies on friction from the soil to help it dig down. The likely reason for its trouble digging is that the fine dry regolith, which is supposed to provide friction to keep the mole from bouncing up on each strike has not been doing so, causing the mole to work its way up and almost out of its hole.
By pushing down on the rod with a shovel-like sampling instrument, NASA is finally making progress getting the mole to dig again.
Direct link to the mission blog: https://www.dlr.de/blogs/en/all-blog-posts/The-InSight-mission-logbook.aspx.
Previously:
Mashing May Mitigate Mars Mole Meandering
More Mars Mole Mission Misfortune
Mars Mole Mission Rues Resistanceless Regolith
NASA to Jack up Insight Lander to Assess Non-Penetrating Probe
InSight Impinges Insufficiently in Site
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