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For SpaceNut re Azure environment...
Because the test environment has become unusable twice in the recent past, due to failed automatic software updates, I decided to turn off the automatic update feature. I don't think it is needed, and I'd like the environment to be stable at least until we have collected the updated software for installation at Mars Society.
The change made today was implemented in a text file that (I gather) controls automatic updates. What I don't know is whether I changed the correct line.
(th)
For Void re solar power at Jupiter or even further out....
http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 17#p222917
In your post above, you provided what I took to be support for the practicality of nuclear power for a mission at Callisto.
However, I think your study of solar reflecting mirrors for deep space power is of potential interest to future planners for deep space missions, and perhaps even for settlements.
Oldfart1939 pointed out that the the power of the Sun's illumination decreases in a non-linear fashion with distance.
However, your drawings have shown (or appear to show) very large mirrors.
While I understand numbers are not your strong suit, perhaps you can enlist other NewMars members to help with sizing your mirrors.
If you want to provide an Earth equivalent solar illumination of a surface, at the distance of Callisto, it should be possible for a NewMars member with the needed skills to size your mirror. With that information you would then be able to decide if the project is feasible.
You can start the ball rolling by specifying the surface area you wish to illuminate at Earth equivalent levels, and the location where you would like to deploy the mirror.
(th)
For SpaceNu re #43 ...
Thanks for finding and showing the article about vertical and horizontal thermal energy storage and retrieval systems.
The abbreviation "mm" may stand for meters? The abbreviation is not clarified.
For me, "mm" means millimeter, so the article was a bit confusing.
(th)
For SpaceNut re #3522...
Just FYI... the version we are updating is 1.5.11 dated 2012.
I am proposing we rename our version as 1.5.12, so it is not mistaken for the version from Github.
(th)
For SpaceNut re #27
Thanks for finding and showing the link to the article about (what I gather is) a way to use semi-conductor material to hold energy.
The article describes how research to do something else led to the discovery that the semiconductor material between two plates could hold a charge.
(th)
For SpaceNut re #152
Thank you for finding and posting the report about a trial commercialization scale test in South Korea to make formic acid from CO2 captured from the air.
For all ... ? can formic acid feed into a fuel manufacturing process? Apparently (per the article) formic acid is a commercially useful chemical.
(th)
For GW Johnson re #193
This sure would be a good time for Calliban to join the flow here....
Calliban has often written about nuclear power plants, and even more often about the problems of cooling.
In the absence of Calliban, I will accept your prediction that a radiator would need to be physically larger to deliver thermal energy to the atmosphere of Mars, and your equally informed prediction that increasing airflow at Mars cannot make up for the density.
That leaves onboard cooling as a possible solution.
If you were given a contract to design a vehicle for Mars, and you were given a 130 Kw reactor, you might consider alternatives to the cooling methods you've already considered.
One available option unique to Mars is dry ice.
If you designed a system with a wagon load of dry ice for use as a coolant, then I would ** hope ** you could design a solution that is compact and able to operate efficiently with that 30 Kw of power.
One possible benefit of this scenario is that if you are heating all that dry ice to cool your reactor, then you would (presumably) have gas available to operate simple mechanical machinery, rather than just exhausting the gas to the exterior.
I ** would ** like to see some numbers...
There should be data available on the performance of radiators in varying gas density situations.
It should be possible to find experimental data that shows the effect of lower atmospheric density on the effectiveness of cooling fins, such as those used for piston engines operating at 30,000 feet or greater, as we done at one time.
The cooling in those cases was achieved by moving the radiator through the available atmosphere.
(th)
The observations about the axial tilt of Callisto inspired me to ask Google if it could find anything on the subject....
AI Overview
Learn more
…
Callisto's axial tilt, or the angle between its rotational and orbital axes, changes between 0.4 and 1.6° due to its orbit's quasi-periodic inclination and eccentricity changes. These changes are caused by solar and planetary gravitational perturbations over centuries. Callisto's orbit is slightly eccentric and tilted toward Jupiter's equator, with an eccentricity range of 0.0072–0.0076 and an inclination range of 0.20–0.60°.Wikipedia
Callisto (moon) - Wikipedia
Its orbit is very slightly eccentric and inclined to the Jovian equator, with the eccentricity and inclination changing quasi-periodically due to solar and planetary gravitational perturbations on a timescale of centuries. The ranges of change are 0.0072–0.0076 and 0.20–0.60°, respectively. These orbital variations cause the axial tilt (the angle between the rotational and orbital axes) to vary between 0.4 and 1.6°. The dynamical isolation of Callisto means that it has never been appreciably tidally heated, which has important consequences for its internal structure and evolution.
Show moreCallisto (moon)
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Callisto_(moon)
These orbital variations cause the axial tilt (the angle between the rotational and orbital axes) to vary between 0.4 and 1.6°. The dynamical isolation of ...
It appears that the term "axial tilt" has meaning with respect to the orbital plane of an object.
If I understand the situation correctly, the axis of rotation of Callisto is almost exactly parallel to the axis of it's orbit around Jupiter itself.
However, at this point, I am unsure of how the axis of the orbit compares to the axis of rotation of Jupiter.
If someone has time to investigate, and is willing to post something to try to explain this, I'd appreciate it.
This is an instance of Basic Orbital Mechanics, without a doubt.
(th)
For GW Johnson re #181
Is there any reason you can think of why Mars air can't provide all the cooling you need?
The air is thin, so you'll need a fan to blow the air past radiator fins.
This discussion needs to be lifted out of the hand waving category.
If a reactor generates 30 Kw, and 100 kw of thermal energy needs to be dissipated, and the density of the atmosphere is:
Per Google:
The atmosphere of Mars is much thinner and colder than Earth's having a max density 20g/m3 (about 2% of Earth's value) with a temperature generally below zero down to -60 Celsius. The average surface pressure is about 610 pascals (0.088 psi) which is less than 1% of the Earth's value. Atmosphere of Mars.
Then it should be possible to compute the amount of that 30 Kw that needs to be invested in driving the fan to achieve the needed cooling.
This forum tends to generate a lot of hand waving.
Let's try to steer a course toward solid numbers that a Mars Mission planner can use to design equipment.
(th)
Mars just passed through perhelion...
Mars's most recent perihelion occurred on Wednesday, May 8, 2024 at 4:08 PDT (11:08 UTC). Perihelion is the point in a planet's orbit when it's closest to the sun. Mars's perihelion in 2024 was at a distance of 1.38 AU.
The event was noted in the daily Mars Business Calender.
The distance between Mars and the Sun was observed to be decreasing, until the change passed through zero, and it is now increasing.
(th)
For Calliban re #41
Your statement about ground source heat pumps, and the surface area required, would certainly make sense if a traditional field of pipes laid just below the surface is what you have in mind.
However, a vertical heat store should be possible for a much smaller permanent area.
If you have time, and if the subject is of interest, please compare the costs of a field of coils vs that of a vertical store of equivalent capacity.
I bring this up because it appears (from hints we've seen from Internet reports in recent times) that advances in vertical drilling technology are happening.
If the cost of drilling a vertical shaft is reduced, then a vertical heat store may become more attractive.
In the process of doing that evaluation, please compare the efficacy of use of water as the heat storage medium instead of moist soil.
I would imagine water might be a better overall heat storage medium.
A vertical store would need walls to maintain the shape of the store over time.
Metal is a candidate material, but ceramic or concrete might be attractive as an alternative.
The shaft need not be water tight, unless there is a risk of loss of water to the surrounding underground material.
The water table varies from one location to the next, and it also changes over time, so the question of whether to seal the store or not might not have a simple answer.
Never-the-less, if you were to advise a home owner about how to implement thermal storage and heat pumps most effectively, perhaps a vertical store might make sense in some situations.
(th)
For Void re Climate Change....
http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 75#p222875
It is good to see you bravely attempting to tackle climate change on an entire planet, the size of Earth.
It seems to me unlikely that any human being is capable of understanding the flows of energy and material of an entire planet, and the best we (NewMars) members can do is to study attempts by those who are able to find small bits of data to consider, without understanding the totality of a planetary system.
Your investigations of this important topic are helpful.
It seems to me this is an example of the blind men investigating an elephant and announcing what each has discovered by touch, magnified to the size of a planet the size of Earth.
I noticed that there were other videos in the section of YouTube where the video you showed us is located. Some appear to be reporting on sea level changes at various locations. It seems to me that since the seas are constantly moving due to the rotation of the Earth and the pull of the Moon, the Sun and other bodies, it will be difficult to measure the impact of flows of fresh water from melting glaciers and polar ice caps, let alone the expansion of sea water due to inflow of solar energy.
You've certainly taken on a challenging subject, and I am looking forward to your future reports.
(th)
The Azure environment was unresponsive again this morning.
The Azure control panel reports that OS patches were attempted last night and they failed again.
I'll Stop and Restart the service.
Yesterday Stop took 12 minutes.
Starting Stop at 12:26 UTC .... >> System was back running at 12:55 UTC (just under 30 minutes).
Statius Deallocating at 12:27
Expecting stopped status at 12:38
Actual stopped status: 12:37:21
Now restarting...at 12:30:00 UTC
Status: running: 12:38:33
Note: it takes additional time for MySQL to restart... The PHP pages show up immediately after restart, but a login will take longer than usual, because MySQL does not restart automatically.
The behavior today differs from previous restarts.... the forums are not accepting login ....
At 12:53, I have an error message about the MySQL restart:
Fatal error: Uncaught mysqli_sql_exception: No such file or directory in /var/www/html/forums/FluxBB/config.php:23 Stack trace: #0 /var/www/html/forums/FluxBB/config.php(23): mysqli->__construct() #1 /var/www/html/forums/FluxBB/include/common.php(38): require('...') #2 /var/www/html/forums/FluxBB/misc.php(13): require('...') #3 {main} thrown in /var/www/html/forums/FluxBB/config.php on line 23
This means (or I ** think ** it means) that the MySQL request was submitted by the PHP pages, but MySQL was not available, and the PHP page timed out.
And now, at 12:55, the site is back up. Total elapsed time was 29 minutes.
(th)
===
Today on Mars: 0037/18/12 Thursday Days of the week offset 0 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth (updated 2024/05/08))
Today on Earth: 2024/05/09 Wednesday (Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars [Aphelion occurred May 30, 2023 Earth Calendar]
====*=
Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim … _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion
Martian Year: 37 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 9 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 270 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 251.4 Sol Number: 486 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037486
Solar Longitude: 250.8 Sol Number: 485 Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0037485 << skipdayonmars << AlignmentOffsetZero
Solar Longitude: 250.1 Sol Number: 485 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037485
<<#
Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.
Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars data J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred at Ls 251 on Sol 485 – Earth Date 2024/05/08 Next: (estimated) 2026/03/06
Perihelion occurred at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (actual) 2024/05/08
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152. Aphelion Earth Dates: Earlier: 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per www.planetary.org)
Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.
Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,671,314 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is +1173 <= +0049 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/09 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,670,141 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -00986 <= -0041 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/08 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,671,127 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -03157 <= -0132 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/07 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
==*==*==*
Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.
=== Mars is in Regular Movement as seen from Earth. Mars is progressing from lower right to upper left in the view from Earth. Slant 20 degrees.
Next up: Galaxy above path: PGC 1201495 RA 00h 27m 36.6s – Day 0 -
PGC 1192305 RA 00h 25m 03.5s – Day 0 – right at 9 hours past marker – last day for 305
====*====*>>>
Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.
Note: The curve of the path of Mars as seen against the background of stars is now a line heading left at a downward angle.
As of 2023/01/11, the curve of the path has returned to regular movement to the left border
Light travel time today is between 16 and 17 minutes. Communications delay would be 32+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance 2024/05/09 290,833,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/05/08 291,433,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/05/07 291,993,000 (decreasing)
#>
Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396
Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun)
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in this cycle. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip
In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.
Regular movement of Mars as seen from Earth resumed as of 2023/01/13. RA is once again increasing.
According to www.hercampus.com, Retrograde movement began October 30, 2022.
The online solar system display at the link below shows clearly how the Mars movement will occur in months ahead.
This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.
This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/
===
Sol 486 is in Month 18 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 18 extends from Sol 475 through 501. <<== There are 27 days in Month 18. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 486 is Thursday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 485 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 522 June 13th
##
The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. <<== The current year on Mars is 37
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.
Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.
For current weather on Mars see:
***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)
https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/
Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ … ope=Latest
All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries
Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Month 18 of 24: Last month of Quarter 3 << There are 27 days in Month 18 <<== Proposed name: Perihelion
ChatGPT4 is back on duty, after absence for about a week...
It seemed a bit on the huffy side to me, in our first visit since the absence.
Prior to the absence, I felt as though we were working together in a very comfortable manner.
My guess is that the developers have given ChatGPT4 a whole lot of new training, and while it may well be more powerful, it seems to have lost the agreeable tone that made is such an enjoyable work companion.
ChatGPT 3.5 filled in well during the absence, but now ChatGPT 3.5 is gone from the menu.
In post #266, Mars_B4_Moon reported on developments of competing AI systems.
In my opinion, the assertion by competitors that their systems are "better" is questionable.
The user experience is what ** I ** measure by, and the ChatGPT4 that I was working with in recent months seems to be gone.
Someone new is filling those very capable shoes.
(th)
For SpaceNut re 3520
Thank you for the new announcement that appears above the line we need to fix. I used grep to find the location of the text that appears when a visitor clicks on the Register button ...
sudo grep -Rni "This forum is accepting new registrations"
lang/English/register.php:7:'No new regs'
=> 'This forum is accepting new registrations via email. Please see Recruiting Topic',
The file to be changed is in register.php,
It has been changed in the clone, so when we upgrade to the clone, the message will be there.
***
This evening, while monitoring the monthly 3D Printer meeting, I completed a review of the remaining files in the forum... most checked out clean.
A very small number have issues, and I'll work on them tomorrow. Some of the PHP files look to me like extra baggage left over from previous versions.
However, since I don't know which files we need and which not, my present plan is to simply clean up all of them.
(th)
For SpaceNut re #3518
Thanks for working on the Inactive member group!
The message here is NOT hard coded. I changed it in the Clone.
Update ... SpaceNut... It appears I owe you an apology.... I can't find the Registration text. I may have changed it in the MySQL database.
I'll investigate further. If a change in MySQL is needed, I can ask kbd512 if he would be willing to make the change.
That message ** should ** be available to the Administrator (in my opinion).
Here is the present text:
This forum is not accepting new registrations.
I'll look for where you can change that message. << Update: I looked and did NOT find it.
What we want it to say is:
This forum is accepting new registrations by email. Please see Recruiting topic
The message is in the Admin section. I'll look for it.
Update ... the new InActive member group looks good!
(th)
For Void re post showing interesting drawings ...
https://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.ph … 64#p222864
The bottom drawing in this long post caught my eye ....
The concept deserves support ....
We have the potential to add a "Like" button as part of the work we are doing to upgrade FluxBB.
In the mean time, please consider adding a new drawing based upon the telescope mirror that feeds a greenhouse though the eyepiece.
The update I'm hoping you will consider adding is a docking port for human harvesters at the axis opposite the sunlight collection system.
Your concept of rotation of the farm allows for a wide range of gravity that might prove advantageous to various plants.
A concern that might inspire your creativity is how to deal with heat that arrives with the photons from the Sun. Your initial drawing does not include radiators, but I'll bet that Calliban would advise you to add them, if you were to ask him.
(th)
Thaks to Mars_B4_Moon for reminding us that the nuclear powered rovers are indeed "nukemobiles"
I went back and checked the early days of this topic, and it started out with a vision of huge reactors, and plenty of alternatives.
One poster suggested RTG's and that poster was rewarded with a critical comment by someone else.
The fact is... NASA has had nukemobiles on Mars for quite some time now, and they performed well and Perseverance is ** still ** performing well.
I asked Google for an update on the 110 watt system in Perseverance ...
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/press_kit … gy%20(DOE).
What Is an MMRTG?
Perseverance's power system works essentially like a nuclear battery. The MMRTG converts heat from the natural radioactive decay of plutonium-238 into a steady flow of electricity. The power system will reliably produce about 110 watts (similar to a light bulb) at the start of Perseverance's mission, declining a few percent each year in a very predictable way. The MMRTG doesn't just power the rover; excess heat from it keeps the rover's tools and systems at their correct operating temperatures.The MMRTG also charges two lithium-ion batteries, which are used during daily operations and when the demand temporarily exceeds the usual electrical output levels. Perseverance's power demand can reach 900 watts during science activities.
The MMRTG, located on the aft of the rover, weighs about 99 pounds (45 kilograms) altogether. It contains 10.6 pounds (4.8 kilograms) of plutonium dioxide as its heat source.
The two batteries weigh a total of 58.4 pounds (26.5 kilograms) and each has a capacity of about 43 amp-hours.
More details on the MMRTG can be found on this electrical power page.
(th)
The Azure environment was unresponsive again this morning ... The Azure control panel log did not show anything specific as the cause.
I ** was ** working on the site last night, and it was working when I signed off.
The Stop operation took 12 minutes and the Start took a minute.
Both web sites appear to be operating normally.
The bottom tier service costs $8,00 per month plus charges for usage.
The next tier up costs $30 per month. I can afford the bottom tier, so we'll just have to live with restarts occasionally.
(th)
For RGClark...
The post by Mars_B4_Moon comes across to me as having little (if anything) to do with your theme.
It seems to me it is another (rather long) argument that supports the idea that it might be wiser for the human race to try to reach Mars without having proven it's ability to land and live on the Moon.
If you have the time, and it the question is of interest, please review the post by Mars_B4_Moon to see if it has anything to do with the topic you introduced.
For all ... it seems to me there are very few reasons why Artemis might be "better" than Apollo, and RGClark had to really stretch to find one or two.
The list of reasons why Artemis is inferior to Apollo is probably much longer, and Mars_B4_Moon seems to have found several of them.
The key reason for the failure of Artemis was given in the post by Mars_B4_Moon .... the budget for the venture has been severely constrained. NASA leadership has had to try to complete a very difficult mission with a tight budget and without the fever pitch of National enthusiasm that Apollo enjoyed.
Best wishes for success with this topic.... you'll need it!
(th)
===
Today on Mars: 0037/18/11 Wednesday Days of the week offset 0 with Earth. (count from Mars to Earth (updated 2024/05/08))
One day note: AlignmentOffsetZero
Today on Earth: 2024/05/08 Wednesday (Earth Date) Post Title: Today on Mars [Aphelion occurred May 30, 2023 Earth Calendar]
====*=
Per http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr/mars/tim … _time.html also see: in-the-sky.org for opposition/perigee/aphelion
Martian Year: 37 Martian Astronomical Month in 12 month format: 9 <<== The Astronomical month will increment when longitude reaches 270 degrees
===
Solar Longitude: 250.8 Sol Number: 485 Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0037485 << skipdayonmars
Solar Longitude: 250.1 Sol Number: 485 Change in degrees is +.6 Julian date is: J0037485
Solar Longitude: 249.5 Sol Number: 484 Change in degrees is +.7 Julian date is: J0037484
<<#
Note that Solar Longitude measurement varies as a function of location in orbit. Ls 0 is the moment when the Sun appears to transit from one hemisphere to the other. Update from Mars.NASA.gov (The Sun crosses the equator of Mars (Vernal Equinox)). The transition itself is a function of the tilt of an object with respect to the Solar plane. Per squarewidget.com, Hipparchus created the celestial coordinate system we use today.
Note#2: https://theskylive.com/mars-tracker This web site shows the astronomical position of Mars as seen from Earth
Todo: At next Aphelion/Perihelion record the Mars data J00##### (and set Search term)
Perihelion occurred at Ls 251 on Sol 485 - Earth Date 2022/06/21 Next: (estimated) 2024/05/08
Perihelion occurred at Ls 253 on Sol 485 Earth Date 2020/08/03 Earlier: 2018/09/16, 2016/10/29
Aphelion occurred at--- Ls 071 on Sol 152. Aphelion Earth Dates: Earlier: 2017/10/07, 2015/11/20
Aphelion occurred near Ls 070 on Sol 153 (per www.planetary.org)
Note#3: The computations below are dependent upon both the computations provided by the reference web site and by accuracy of recording of the time of observations. The calculations use tenths of hours. The Sun Distance needs to be captured at the moment the time increments to a given tenth.
Note on data below: The figure quoted after distance is a rate of progress along the orbital path [exact meaning to be determined]
Minus prefix means Mars is approaching the Sun. Plus prefix means Mars is moving away from the Sun.
The figure computed to the right of "Difference" is the rate of change of the distance to Sun. Increasing to Aphelion/Decreasing to Perihelion.
===
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,670,141 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -00986 <= -0041 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/08 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,671,127 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -03157 <= -0132 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/07 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
Distance: Mars >> Sun per theskylive.com: 206,674,284 km [26.5 km/s] Difference is -05315 <= -0221 km/hour at 08.0 on 05/06 (time 8:00) (24.0 hours)
==*==*==*
Observation: The sky view is ** filled ** with objects and some have been recorded and given identification by humans or their robot assistants
And! ** All ** the location assignments are from the perspective of Earth. The entire catalog needs to be adjusted when inter-stellar travel begins
The work that lies ahead for the astronomical community is daunting - there is work ahead for centuries
2022/01/19 - All current (existing) stellar catalogs are computed with reference to the Earth. Another civilization would use it's planet as reference.
Perhaps a Milky Way frame of reference will become necessary at some point. The Earth is as good a Zero point as any, for humans.
=== Mars is in Regular Movement as seen from Earth. Mars is progressing from lower right to upper left in the view from Earth. Slant 20 degrees.
Next up: Galaxy in path PGC 1192305 RA 00h 25m 03.5s – Day 0 -
TYC 3-444-1 RA 00h 21m 35.0s – Day 0 – Day 1 at right edge of view … last minutes for 444
====*====*>>>
Zoom Out Capability As a general observation ... I've become increasingly interested in knowing what the larger view of the sky might be like.
The site: theskylive.com does a terrific job of matching the view from Earth towards Mars, against a background of actual astronomical plates.
I wish there were a way (or rather, I wish I ** knew ** about a way that may exist) to enlarge the view until the entire galaxy is in view (Zoom out)
Update 2022/12/08 TheSkyLive.com provides a large view of selected objects: Select [Major Bodies] Then select [Information] in the body of interest
Update 2022/12/08 Scroll down to (body) Position and Finder Charts. Field of view is 50x30 degrees.
Note: The curve of the path of Mars as seen against the background of stars is now a line heading left at a downward angle.
As of 2023/01/11, the curve of the path has returned to regular movement to the left border
Light travel time today is between 16 and 17 minutes. Communications delay would be 32+ minutes round trip.
===
Earth Distance 2024/05/08 291,433,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/05/07 291,993,000 (decreasing)
Earth Distance 2024/05/06 292,568,000 (decreasing)
#>
Light travel in one second is (about) 300,000 kilometers. The distance covered in one minute is about 18,000,000 kilometers. Estimated light times:
1:18, 2:36, 3:54, 4:72, 5:90, 6:108, 7:126, 8:144,9:162,10:180,11:198,12:216,13:234,14:252,15:270,16:288,17:306,18:324,19:342,20:360,21:378,22:396
Maximum Earth-Mars distance is estimated to be 401 million kilometers (both at apogee and opposite vs Sun)
Mars and Earth were in Opposition (Earth center) in December of 2022. The date coincided with a (very rare) occultation of Mars by the Moon.
Mars and Earth were in Conjunction (Sun center) in November of 2023.
Mars and Earth appear to have been as close as they will get in this cycle. 81,454,323 kilometers on J0036644 Time: 4.53 minutes - 9 minutes round trip
In his online interview with Dr. Zubrin at the 2020 Mars Conference, Elon Musk reminded the audience that communications with Mars will necessarily include an intermediary station to handle traffic when the Sun is between Mars and Earth. Communications delays in that circumstance will increase due to the extra distance to be covered. Mr. Musk indicated he expects such communication will be handled by laser. Location would be optimum at poles of solar plane.
Regular movement of Mars as seen from Earth resumed as of 2023/01/13. RA is once again increasing.
According to www.hercampus.com, Retrograde movement began October 30, 2022.
The online solar system display at the link below shows clearly how the Mars movement will occur in months ahead.
This web site offers an online model of the solar system: www.solarsystemscope.com It requires Chrome 57, Firefox 52 or Safari 10.1. Viewed 2022/10/13: Opposition will occur some time in December of 2022. Per earthsky.org, the date is December 8, 2022.
This web site offers an online orrery view of the Solar System: https://www.theplanetstoday.com/
===
Sol 485 is in Month 18 of a Proposed 24 month calendar. See Post 19 of Holidays topic for a summary.
Month 18 extends from Sol 475 through 501. <<== There are 27 days in Month 18. See post 82 of Holidays topic for current details.
Direct path to source: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Sol 485 is Wednesday in the Proposed Business calendar for Mars. Sol 485 was a Skip Day on Mars. Next is near 522 June 13th
##
The Next New Year's on Mars will occur when Solar Longitude reaches 360 degrees. <<== The current year on Mars is 37
Per www.planetary.org Year 36 started 2021/02/07 on Earth. Mars Year 37 began 2022/12/27 on Earth.
Days of the Week Alignment:
Days of the week fall behind Earth due to the longer Sol, but they also change when Friday is omitted at the end of a Quarter
337 Earth days were observed to elapse in the 2020 weekday cycle. There were 7 week day transitions and 2 Quarter ends.
The next cycle began on the first Sol of the period of coincidence. The alignment of weekdays interval is in the range: (310 - 337)
To find the first day of a period of coincidence: Set up: SearchTerm(colon) and (colon)Alignment and J0036* or J0037*
The most recent End-Of-Quarter change occurred: … The search specified above gave 11 pages of results.
For current weather on Mars see:
***https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/weather/***
***Insight's weather info has been suspended and now is directing to msl*** <<-- Insight's mission is over (2022)
https://mars.nasa.gov/msl/weather/
Per SpaceNut: Here is another web page by NASA containing the latest news releases
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/?page=0&per_ … ope=Latest
All forum members are invited to post significant events for this day.
Events of interest will be ON Mars, or relate to Mars. Examples are launches, landings, discoveries
Standard Month in Mars Business Calendar Copyright ® 2023 NewMars.com Mars Society
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Recruiting text may be found at the bottom of this post: http://newmars.com/forums/viewtopic.php … 57#p154257
Month 18 of 24: Last month of Quarter 3 << There are 27 days in Month 18 <<== Proposed name: Perihelion
For SpaceNut ...
When you get a spare minute, please replace the incorrect text in the Registration message:
New text:
This forum is accepting new registrations by email. Please see Recruiting topic
End new Text;
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This is one of Void's topics... It has the distinction of an endorsement by Louis!
Today, I'm offering a link to a deep dive into the history of Earth, with speculation that a weaker magnetic field might have accelerated development of life due to loss of hydrogen, yielding increases of oxygen.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/earth-magnet … 55970.html
Over 500 million years ago, weird complex creatures emerged on Earth. Scientists now think they know why
Katie Hunt, CNN
Tue, May 7, 2024 at 12:01 PM EDT·6 min read
41Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more.
Earth’s magnetic field plays a key role in making our planet habitable. The protective bubble over the atmosphere shields the planet from solar radiation, winds, cosmic rays and wild swings in temperature.
However, Earth’s magnetic field almost collapsed 591 million years ago, and this change, paradoxically, may have played a pivotal role in the blossoming of complex life, new research has found.
I'm hoping that one or two NewMars members might actually read the article so they can make informed comments.
(th)
For SpaceNut re cleanup of FluxBB 1.5.11 PHP files ...
The work is going faster than at first expected... a number of files are not generating errors...
We have reviewed 18 of 103 files, or 17%
***
Just FYI ... kbd512 checked the environment at Mars Society, and did not find the current PHP .... that implies the updated PHP might have to be installed to support the updated FluxBB package.
*** update later ... progress was satisfactory this evening work session... most PHP files tested were clean.
One or two needed very minor correction, such as adding apostrophes or parentheses.
I am starting to learn the correct syntax for some of the situations Inteliphese finds, but others still require ChatGPT 3.5's insight.
ChatGPT4 remains unavailable ....
(th)