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Author Topic: Intelligent life on Mars
DownTheRoad
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Babbler # 4523

posted 08 November 2004 09:05 AM      Profile for DownTheRoad     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
Read about it here.
quote:
LOS ANGELES (AP) _ As NASA's Mars rovers keep rolling past all expectations of their useful lives, scientists have a happy mystery: For some reason one of the vehicles has actually gained power recently.

Opportunity recently experienced an unexplained rejuvenation from what can so far be described only as two or three significant "cleaning events,'' said Jim Erickson, the rover project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.

"Now we're assuming they're cleaning, but all we can really say is that overnight the solar panels produced between 2 and 5 percent additional power immediately,'' he said. "We're surmising that for some reason dust is being removed from the solar panel and that's increasing the efficiency of the sunlight being converted to electricity.''

The rover team has been bandying about theories, but hasn't figured out the cause.

"One favorite is that a dust devil happened to pick the vehicle to go through and go over the surface of it and clean it off a little bit,'' Erickson said.



Dust devils? Bah. I say little green men and a government coverup.

From: land of cotton | Registered: Oct 2003  |  IP: Logged
Scott Piatkowski
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posted 08 November 2004 10:42 AM      Profile for Scott Piatkowski   Author's Homepage     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
I think we should concentrate our search for intelligent life on earth.
From: Kitchener-Waterloo | Registered: Sep 2001  |  IP: Logged
fuslim
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posted 08 November 2004 12:37 PM      Profile for fuslim     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
quote:
I think we should concentrate our search for intelligent life on earth.


From: Vancouver BC | Registered: Apr 2004  |  IP: Logged
Vansterdam Kid
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Babbler # 5474

posted 08 November 2004 08:17 PM      Profile for Vansterdam Kid   Author's Homepage     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
That would be interesting if it's true. And I'm all for finding out, heck there is probably sentient extra terrestrials somewhere, considering the mathematical possibilities of how large the universe is and all. I just doubt there's any on Mars.
From: bleh.... | Registered: Apr 2004  |  IP: Logged
radiorahim
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posted 08 November 2004 09:12 PM      Profile for radiorahim     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
quote:
LOS ANGELES (AP) _ As NASA's Mars rovers keep rolling past all expectations of their useful lives, scientists have a happy mystery: For some reason one of the vehicles has actually gained power recently.

Something like this happened to the ham radio satellite "Oscar 7". It was originally launched in 1974, was operational till 1981 and then died.

All of a sudden in 2002 the thing came back to life and became operational again. Apparently a short circuit in the battery system "unshorted" and the satellite was able to use its solar panels.


Oscar 7


From: a Micro$oft-free computer | Registered: Jun 2002  |  IP: Logged
remind
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posted 08 November 2004 10:51 PM      Profile for remind     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
Gotta love how science overlooks more realistic possibilites and move right to a "accidental dust devil" theory.

Thanks for the links they were great.


From: "watching the tide roll away" | Registered: Jun 2004  |  IP: Logged
fuslim
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posted 09 November 2004 05:03 AM      Profile for fuslim     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
quote:
Gotta love how science overlooks more realistic possibilites and move right to a "accidental dust devil" theory.

Let's see, I wonder what other possibilities there may be....

Intelligent life on Mars, but not too intelligent. They think God has landed, and they worship him/her and feel bad 'cause he's dusty.

Intelligent life from somewhere other than Mars who just happened to be there, and dusted the thing off because they're naturally neat and tidy.

A quantum vortex sucked the dust up into a mini black hole.

The machine itself has evolved to the point where it's worried about personal hygiene.

Deepak Chopra willed the dust away.

There never was any dust, the machine was just tired.

Jimmy Hoffa...

The dust is the intelligent life, and got bored hanging around.


From: Vancouver BC | Registered: Apr 2004  |  IP: Logged
aRoused
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Babbler # 1962

posted 09 November 2004 09:41 AM      Profile for aRoused     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
I really don't get it. Mars has *wind*. So some blew some dust on, and another gust blew some dust off, they're suprised about that?
From: The King's Royal Burgh of Eoforwich | Registered: Dec 2001  |  IP: Logged
skdadl
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posted 09 November 2004 09:54 AM      Profile for skdadl     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
quote:
Mars has *wind*.


From: gone | Registered: May 2001  |  IP: Logged
Mr. Magoo
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posted 09 November 2004 10:08 AM      Profile for Mr. Magoo   Author's Homepage     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
Hold on a sec... it could still be sentient wind.
From: ø¤°`°¤ø,¸_¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸_¸,ø¤°°¤ø,¸_¸,ø¤°°¤ø, | Registered: Dec 2002  |  IP: Logged
kukuchai
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posted 10 November 2004 11:51 AM      Profile for kukuchai        Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
quote:
Originally posted by Scott Piatkowski:
I think we should concentrate our search for intelligent life on earth.

Ha ha ha ha ad infinitum ad nauseum!


From: Earth | Registered: Jun 2004  |  IP: Logged

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