I am following Curiosity on the JPL site. They don't seem to worry much and they give more space to a new amplifier they just built.
Tullio

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At this point there isn't much anyone at JPL can do other than wait with the rest of us. On the other hand a large amplifier that can blast sound waves to put out a massive forest fire has relevance to a great number of people that could lose their lives or homes. JPL and NASA will always promote a development that has potential to do good here at home as a means to justify their annual budget.

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Bob DeWoody

My motto: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow as it may not be required. This no longer applies in light of current events.

Good news everyone!

NASA Mars Orbiter Repositioned to Phone Home Mars Landing


PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft has successfully adjusted its orbital location to be in a better position to provide prompt confirmation of the August landing of the Curiosity rover.

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) spacecraft carrying Curiosity can send limited information directly to Earth as it enters Mars' atmosphere. Before the landing, Earth will set below the Martian horizon from the descending spacecraft's perspective, ending that direct route of communication. Odyssey will help to speed up the indirect communication process.

NASA reported during a July 16 news conference that Odyssey, which originally was planned to provide a near-real-time communication link with Curiosity, had entered safe mode July 11. This situation would have affected communication operations, but not the rover's landing. Without a repositioning maneuver, Odyssey would have arrived over the landing area about two minutes after Curiosity landed.

A spacecraft thruster burn Tuesday lasting about six seconds has nudged Odyssey about six minutes ahead in its orbit. Odyssey now is operating normally, and confirmation of Curiosity's landing is expected to reach Earth at about 10:31 p.m. PDT Aug. 5, as originally planned.

"Information we are receiving indicates the maneuver has been completed as planned," said Gaylon McSmith, Mars Odyssey project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), in Pasadena, Calif. "Odyssey has been working at Mars longer than any other spacecraft, so it is appropriate that it has a special role in supporting the newest arrival."

Two other Mars orbiters, NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) and the European Space Agency's Mars Express, also will be in position to receive radio transmissions from MSL during its descent. However, they will be recording information for later playback. Only Odyssey can relay information immediately.

Odyssey arrived at Mars in 2001. In addition to its own scientific observations, it has served as a communications relay for NASA's Spirit and Opportunity Mars rovers and the Phoenix lander. Spirit and Phoenix are no longer operational. Odyssey and MRO will provide communication relays for Curiosity during the rover's two-year prime mission.

Odyssey and MSL, with its Curiosity rover, are managed by JPL for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. Curiosity was designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The Odyssey spacecraft is operated by JPL and Lockheed Martin in Denver. Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Denver built Odyssey.

Source.

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Member of the People Encouraging Niceness In Society club.

Very much looking forward to this. I remember the Spirit and Opportunity landings, but for some reason don't recall the Sojourner and Phoenix landings as much. The Viking missions are etched in my memory, though. I think that is because they were pioneers, plus they didn't have to compete with a million cable channels, and the internet. It's just as exciting as it ever was, but space exploration needs a good spokesperson like Carl Sagan to keep it in the public imagination.

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The mind is a weird and mysterious place

Very much looking forward to this. I remember the Spirit and Opportunity landings, but for some reason don't recall the Sojourner and Phoenix landings as much. The Viking missions are etched in my memory, though. I think that is because they were pioneers, plus they didn't have to compete with a million cable channels, and the internet. It's just as exciting as it ever was, but space exploration needs a good spokesperson like Carl Sagan to keep it in the public imagination.

I remember following sojourner very closely, I remember how amazing the high resolution color images were, even in the late 90's they looked awesome.

I have been waiting for curiosity's landing for awhile, only one week left to go now. I'll be up late on the net following along.

Will there be a live feed of mission control available on the net does anyone know?

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#resist

They say that Curiosity isn't a life detecting mission, merely looking for geological evidence that the environment was, at some point, suitable for life. I've also read that Curiosity has an instrument that can detect methane gas, and sort out its isotopes, so they can distinguish between methane released by geological processes and that which comes from living things. Also a camera that can magnify enough to see fossils, should any be present.

Very much looking forward to this. I remember the Spirit and Opportunity landings, but for some reason don't recall the Sojourner and Phoenix landings as much. The Viking missions are etched in my memory, though. I think that is because they were pioneers, plus they didn't have to compete with a million cable channels, and the internet. It's just as exciting as it ever was, but space exploration needs a good spokesperson like Carl Sagan to keep it in the public imagination.

I remember following sojourner very closely, I remember how amazing the high resolution color images were, even in the late 90's they looked awesome.

I have been waiting for curiosity's landing for awhile, only one week left to go now. I'll be up late on the net following along.

Will there be a live feed of mission control available on the net does anyone know?

Should be on NASA TV, available here. If that's overloaded (or you keep getting the buffering thing) an alternative is here.

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Member of the People Encouraging Niceness In Society club.

Not much longer to go! Pretty exciting :D

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Countdown

Very exciting! .... :)

John.

Woops! Double post, sorry.

1 hour to landing!! :)

Live coverage;
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv/

John.

Touchdown!! Save and sound in one piece!

Wooooppppeee!

John.

Landed safely....all systems working A1....magic!!!!!

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The Kite Fliers

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Kite fliers: An imaginary club of solo members, those who don't yet
belong to a formal team so "fly their own kites" - as the saying goes.

First image; (Its just a tiny thumbnail test image)
http://twitter.com/NASA/status/232350219700932608/photo/1

Here is a slightly bigger picture!
http://twitter.com/MarsCuriosity/status/232352290919567361/photo/1

They will put the other images here;
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/mars/images/first_images_mars.html

John.

Curiosity's shadow, wheels down, on MARS!




Lt

Yippee!!!!!!!!!

Curiosity Lands on Mars
Mon, 06 Aug 2012 12:32:54 AM CST

NASA's Curiosity rover has landed on Mars! Its descent-stage retrorockets fired, guiding it to the surface. Nylon cords lowered the rover to the ground in the "sky crane" maneuver. When the spacecraft sensed touchdown, the connecting cords were severed, and the descent stage flew out of the way. The time of day at the landing site is mid-afternoon -- about 3 p.m. local Mars time at Gale Crater. The time at JPL's mission control is about 10:31 p.m. Aug. 5 PDT (early morning EDT).

Lynn

Quite frankly, i can't believe it! Its incredible! Its shocking that the whole parachute and sky crane thing actually worked! I'm thrilled!

Press conference in a few minutes;
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv/

John.

Quite frankly, i can't believe it! Its incredible! Its shocking that the whole parachute and sky crane thing actually worked! I'm thrilled!

Press conference in a few minutes;
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv/

John.

I agree with you! This is so exciting.

I hope this image is right??


PIA15968:
Mars Weather Map, Aug. 4, 2012

Lynn

Congratulations to NASA and the team that designed and built the lander/rover. Even though it will be a couple of weeks before they start with the science part of the mission the hard part is over.

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Bob DeWoody

My motto: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow as it may not be required. This no longer applies in light of current events.

Tremendous stuff for a successful landing!

Nasa's Curiosity rover successfully lands on Mars

Great Convergence of Spacecraft around Mars

NASA's New Mars Rover Sends Higher-Resolution Image


Also fantastic for the convergence of spacecraft to relay the second by second details of the landing!

When now for the next rovers for elsewhere across our solar system?... ;-)


Keep searchin',
Martin

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See new freedom: Mageia Linux
Take a look for yourself: Linux Format
The Future is what We all make IT (GPLv3)