NASA has been able to make the most improvement of all the space agencies. Sending a wheeled vehicle to any planet in the solar system was a big challenge. Outside the boundaries of the Earth and the Moon is too difficult. But NASA has enabled it very nicely. Here are three rovers that have helped space programs move forward. As well as, helped the world learn a lot of new information.
Sojourner Rover
The first wheeled vehicle that landed on an outer planet is Sojourner. Today, this robot has served as the basis for the rest of the robots on Mars. Sojourner is a rover, which spent 83 sols (85 Earth days) on mars surface. Sojourner Rover was designed for 7 sols (7 Earth days). It took many pictures of chemical, atmospheric and different measurements. It was launched on December 4, 1996, and landed on Mars on July 4, 1997. The Sojourner is a six-wheeled vehicle designed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). It is 65 cm long, 48 cm wide and 30 cm high. The maximum speed of this rover was 1 cm / s. It was able to arrive at distances up to 500 meters from the lander.
It was able to complete some limited nocturnal operations. Because it did not have a rechargeable battery. The batteries were made of lithium-thionyl chloride (LiSOCl2). It could provide 150 watt-hours of power. It had a total of three cameras. On the front were two monochrome cameras and a color camera in the rear. The rover is named Sojourner after Sojourner Truth. She is an African-American abolitionist and women’s rights advocate.
Opportunity Rover
Opportunity Rover spent 5,352 sols (15 Earth years) on mars surface. It took many pictures of chemical, atmospheric. And also different measurements. It was launched on July 7, 2003, and landed on Mars on January 25, 2004. The Opportunity is a six-wheeled vehicle managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). It has its own motor on every wheel. which gives it a unique power. It is 1.5 meters (4.9 ft) high, 2.3 meters (7.5 ft) wide, and 1.6 meters (5.2 ft) long and weighing 180 kilograms (400 lb). The Opportunity rover, which can only be driven back and forth. Opportunity designed for safe movement up to a 30 degree slope. The maximum speed of this rover was 5 cm / s and the average speed was 0.89 cm / s. The mission ends on Feb 13, 2019.
It is able to find a large part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program. Its power source was being produced through solar panels. When a strong dust storm arises, the sun covers the sky. nd dust accumulates on the solar panels. As a result, it was no longer able to generate energy and the robot was slowly losing power. For various object observation, it was equipped with various tools. Including camera such as Panoramic Camera (Pancam), Navigation Camera (Navcam). Also have Miniature Thermal Emission Spectrometer (Mini-TES) and Hazcams, etc.
Spirit Rover
Robotic rover Spirit is the second one. Spirit Rover continued access from landing to last contact till 2208 sols (2274 Earth days). It took many pictures of chemical, atmospheric. And also different measurements. It was launched on June 10, 2003, and landed on Mars on January 4, 2004. The Spirit is a six-wheeled vehicle managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). It has its own motor on every wheel. which gives it a unique power. It is 1.5 meters (4.9 ft) high, 2.3 meters (7.5 ft) wide, and 1.6 meters (5.2 ft) long and weighing 180 kilograms (400 lb). The Spirit rover, which can only be driven back and forth, was designed for safe movement up to a 30 degree slope. The maximum speed of this rover was 5 cm / s and the average speed was 1 cm / s. The mission declared ends on May 25, 2011.
It is able to find a large part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program. Its power source was being produced through solar panels. On May 1, 2009, it fell in the face of a terrible dust storm. For various object observation, it was equipped with various tools. Including camera such as Panoramic Camera (Pancam), Navigation Camera (Navcam). Also Miniature Thermal Emission Spectrometer (Mini-TES), Hazcams, etc.