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China's Yutu Moon Rover Unable to Properly Maneuver Solar Panels - 0 views

www.universetoday.com/...properly-maneuver-solar-panels

scibyte122 scibyte123 ChineseSpaceProgram-Yutu

shared by Mars Base on 04 Mar 14 - No Cached
  • The serious technical malfunction
  • of China’s Yutu moon rover
  • has been identified as an inability to properly maneuver the life giving solar panels
  • ...12 more annotations...
  • “Yutu suffered a control circuit malfunction in its driving unit,” according to a newly published report on March 1 by the state owned Xinhua news agency.
  • prevented Yutu from entering the second dormancy as planned
  • A functioning control circuit is required to lower the rovers mast
  • They must be folded down into a warmed electronics box to shield them from the damaging effects of the Moon’s nightfall when temperatures plunge dramatically to below minus 180 Celsius, or minus 292 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • The panel driving unit also helps maneuver the panels into position to efficiently point to the sun to maximize the electrical output
  • Chinese space engineers engaged in troubleshooting to try and identify and rectify the technical problems in a race against time to find a solution before the start of Lunar Night 3.
  • The 140 kilogram rover was unable to move during Lunar Day 3 due to the mechanical glitches.
  • “Yutu only carried out fixed point observations during its third lunar day
  • it did complete some limited scientific observations. And fortunately the ground penetrating radar, panoramic and infrared imaging equipment all functioned normally.
  • Yutu and the companion Chang’e-3 lander have again gone into sleep mode during Lunar Night 3 on Feb. 22 and Feb 23 respectively, local Beijing time.
  • the issue with the control circuit malfunction in its driving unit remains unresolved and a still threatens the outlook for Yutu’s future exploration.
  • Yutu is now nearing its planned 3 month long life expectancy
Mars Base

China's Yutu Moon Rover Alive and Awake for 3rd Lunar Day of Exploration despite Malfun... - 0 views

www.universetoday.com/...xploration-despite-malfunction

scibyte120 ChineseSpaceProgram

shared by Mars Base on 15 Feb 14 - No Cached
  • As night fell on Jan. 25, the rover entered its second two week long period of dormancy just as the rover “experienced a mechanical control abnormality,” according to a report by China’s official government newspaper, The People’s Daily.
  • concerned that it might not be able to survive the extremely low temperatures during the lunar night
  • Experts wer
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • Each lunar day and night lasts for alternating periods of 14 Earth days
  • During each long night, the Moon’s temperatures plunge dramatically to below minus 180 Celsius, or minus 292 degrees Fahrenheit
  • The 140 kg Yutu robot is located some 100 m south of the lander.
  • February 13
  • (Feb. 12) amateur radio operators at UHF-satcom reported detection of a signal from Yutu.
Mars Base

Earth Bids China's Yutu Moon Rover Farewell Forever! - 0 views

www.universetoday.com/...tu-moon-rover-farewell-forever

scibyte120 ChineseSpaceProgram

shared by Mars Base on 12 Feb 14 - No Cached
  • The apparently unfortunate and sad breaking news was just reported today in an ultra brief dispatch by the English language version of Chinadaily – with the headline “Loss of lunar rover.”
  • thought that Yutu froze to death due to a pre-hibernation mechanical malfunction and failed to wake up and communicate with China’s mission controllers
  • Beijing on Monday, Feb. 10, when daylight returned to the rovers Moon landing site at Mare Imbrium (Sea of Rains) at the start of what would have been Lunar Day 3 for the mission.
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • The cause of the pre-hibernation malfunction may perhaps be traced back to a buildup of abrasive lunar dust, but no one knows at this time.
Mars Base

UHF-Satcom.com - Chang'e 3 & Yutu reception - 0 views

www.uhf-satcom.com/...chang-e-3

scibyte120 ChineseSpaceProgram ChineseSpaceProgram-Yutu

shared by Mars Base on 15 Feb 14 - No Cached
  • 10th February 2014
  • some nice signals are detected from the Lunar Lander but nothing from the Lunar Rover - several news outlets report that the Rover has had a failure after its Lunar sleep, and that it was not expected to become alive again
  • t doesn't hurt to monitor the downlink now and then.
  • ...12 more annotations...
  • it was thought possible to hear any command uplink signals
  • 12th February 2014
  • Again, searching the various downlink frequencies for signs of life from the 'dead' Lunar Lander
  • nothing was heard
  • indicating that a communications session with the Lunar Lander was not progressing
  • Tuning to
  • did however reveal another huge signal, this time an uplink to the Lunar Rover - China was attempting to talk it back into life
  • immediately the dual band converter was switched
  • was checked where to everyone's surprise, the Lunar Rover was in full chat mode, the Rover had survived and was not dead after all
  • 13th February 2014 - The second night of Yutu's rebirth - would there be signals again?
  • 13th February 2014
  • ere was a lot chatter on the @UHF_Satcom Twitter feed about the discovery of signals from the Yutu rover
Mars Base

China's Historic Moon Robot Duo Awaken from 1st Long Frigid Night and Resume Science Op... - 0 views

www.universetoday.com/...-and-resume-science-operations

scibyte115 ChineseSpaceProgram

shared by Mars Base on 14 Jan 14 - No Cached
  • Yutu woke up
  • Saturday, Jan. 11, at 5:09 a.m. Beijing local time
  • Chang’e-3 lander was awoken on Sunday, Jan. 12, at 8:21 a.m. Beijing local time, according to a BACC statement
  • ...7 more annotations...
  • They went to sleep to conserve energy since there is no sunlight to generate power with the solar arrays during the lunar night.
  • During the nocturnal hiatus they were kept alive by a radioisotopic heat source that kept their delicate computer and electronics subsystems warmed inside a box below the deck
  • It was maintained at a temperature of about minus 40 degrees Celsius to prevent debilitating damage
  • lunar night time environment when temperatures plunged to below minus 180 degrees Celsius, or minus 292 degrees Fahrenheit
  • Just prior to hibernating, the lander snapped the first image of the Earth taken from the Moon’s surface in some four decades
  • Yutu has already resumed roving
  • The Chang’e-3 lander should survive at least a year.
Mars Base

Yutu rover Suffers Significant Setback at Start of 2nd Lunar Night - 0 views

www.universetoday.com/...ck-at-start-of-2nd-lunar-night

scibyte117 ChineseSpaceProgram

shared by Mars Base on 29 Jan 14 - No Cached
  • The six wheeled Yutu rover, which means ‘Jade Rabbit’, has “experienced a mechanical control abnormality” in a new report by China’s official government newspaper, The People’s Daily. Remove this ad
  • ‘Jade Rabbit’ was traversing southwards from the landing site as the incident occurred just days ago – about six weeks into its planned 3 month moon roving expedition
  • very few details have emerged or been released by the Chinese government about Yutu’s condition or fate
  • ...7 more annotations...
  • The abnormality occurred due to the “complicated lunar surface environment,” said the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence
  • took place just prior to the beginning of the 2nd lunar night and
  • ‘dormancy’ for both ‘Jade Rabbit’ and the Chang’e-3
  • Based on unofficial accounts, it appears that one of the solar panels did not fold back properly over Yutu’s mast after it was lowered to the required horizontal position into a warmed box to shield and protect it from the extremely frigid lunar night time temperatures
  • could potentially spell doom for the mast mounted instruments and electronic systems, including the color and navigation cameras and the high gain antenna, if true
  • each Lunar night also lasts approximately 14 Earth days
  • there is no communication possible during sleep mode, no one will know until the resumption of daylight some two weeks from now – around Feb. 8 to 9.
Mars Base

Spectacular Liftoff Thrusts China's First Rover 'Yutu' to the Moon - 0 views

www.universetoday.com/...s-first-rover-yutu-to-the-moon

scibyte111 ChineseSpaceProgram

shared by Mars Base on 02 Dec 13 - No Cached
  • China successfully launched its first ever lunar rover bound for the Moon’s surface aboard a Long March rocket
  • at 1:30 a.m. Beijing local time, Dec. 2, 2013 (12:30 p.m. EST, Dec. 1) from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China.
  • The name for the ‘Yutu’ rover – which translates as ‘Jack Rabbit’ – was chosen after a special naming contest involving a worldwide poll and voting to select the best name
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • ‘Yutu’ stems from a Chinese fairy tale, in which the goddess Chang’e flew off to the moon taking her little pet Jade rabbit with her.
  • The Chang’e 3 lander will fire thrusters to enter lunar orbit on Dec. 6.
  • It is due to make a powered descent to the lunar surface on Dec. 14, firing thrusters at an altitude of 15 km (9 mi) for touchdown in a preselected area called the Bay of Rainbows or Sinus Iridum region.
  • If successful, the Chang’e 3 mission will mark the first soft landing on the Moon since the Soviet Union’s unmanned Luna 24 sample return vehicle landed nearly four decades ago back in 1976.
  • Jack Rabbit measures 150 centimeters high and weighs approximately 120 kilograms
  • The rover and lander are equipped with multiple cameras, spectrometers, an optical telescope, radar and other sensors to investigate the lunar surface and composition
  • The rover is expected to continue operating for at least three months
  • The next step will be an unmanned lunar sample return mission, perhaps around 2020
Mars Base

Chinese rover & lander beam back Portraits with China's Flag shining on Moon's Surface - 0 views

www.universetoday.com/...-flag-shining-on-moons-surface

scibyte113 ChineseSpaceProgram

shared by Mars Base on 16 Dec 13 - No Cached
  • Dec 15
  • Chang’e-3 lunar lander and rover beamed back portraits of one another snapped from the Moon’s surface
  • displayed
  • ...16 more annotations...
  • Chinese national flag
  • After rolling all six wheels into the dirt, Yutu
  • drove to a location about nine meters north of the lander, according to CCTV commentators
  • then turned around so that the red Chinese flag emblazoned on the front side would be facing the lander’s high resolution color cameras for the eagerly awaited portraits of one another
  • Yutu is nearly the size of a golf cart. It measures about 1.5 m x 1 m on its sides and stands about 1.5 m (nearly 5 feet) tall
  • Yutu will depart the landing site
  • and begin its own lunar trek that’s expected to last at least 3 months. Remove this ad
  • equipped with eight science instruments including multiple cameras, spectrometers, an optical telescope, ground penetrating radar and other sensors to investigate the lunar surface and composition
  • The radar instrument installed at the bottom of the rover can penetrate 100 meters deep below the surface to study the Moon’s structure and composition in unprecedented detail, according to
  • senior advisor of China’s lunar probe project,
  • A UV camera will study the earth and its interaction with solar wind and a telescope will study celestial objects
  • will also investigate the moon’s natural resources for use by potential future Chinese astronauts
  • Most of the science instruments are working including at least three cameras and the ground penetrating radar
  • the extremely cold lunar night and temperature fluctuations of more than 300 degrees Celsius – a great engineering challenge.
  • The rover will hibernate during the two week long lunar night
  • A radioisotopic heater will provide heat to safeguard the rovers computer and electronics
Mars Base

China's Maiden Lunar Rover 'Yutu' Rolls 6 Wheels onto the Moon - Photo and Video Gallery - 0 views

www.universetoday.com/...e-moon-photo-and-video-gallery

scibyte113 ChineseSpaceProgram

shared by Mars Base on 15 Dec 13 - No Cached
  • China’s first ever lunar rover rolled
  • onto the Moon’s soil on Sunday, Dec. 15, barely seven hours after the Chang’e-3 mothership touched down
  • The six wheeled ‘Yutu’, or Jade Rabbit, rover drove straight off a pair of ramps at 4:35 a.m. Beijing local time
Mars Base

China's Yutu Moon ro - 0 views

China's Yutu Moon rover starts Lunar Day 4 Awake but Ailing | Universe Today

scibyte129 ChineseSpaceProgram-Yutu

started by Mars Base on 03 May 14 no follow-up yet
Mars Base

Yutu Update | The Pl - 0 views

Yutu Update | The Planetary Society

scibyte129 ChineseSpaceProgram-Yutu

started by Mars Base on 03 May 14 no follow-up yet
Mars Base

China's Maiden Moon Rover Mission Chang'e 3 Achieves Lunar Orbit - 0 views

www.universetoday.com/...oon-rover-achieves-lunar-orbit

scibyte112 ChineseSpaceProgram

shared by Mars Base on 09 Dec 13 - No Cached
  • China’s
  • moon landing probe successfully entered lunar orbit on Friday, Dec. 6
  • China’s ‘Yutu’ lunar lander is riding piggyback atop the four legged landing probe
  • ...2 more annotations...
  • Chang’e 3 is due to make a powered descent to the Moon’s surface on Dec. 14, firing the landing thrusters at an altitude of 15 km (9 mi) for a soft landing in a preselected area called the Bay of Rainbows or Sinus Iridum region.
  • The Bay of Rainbows is a lava filled crater located in the upper left portion of the moon as seen from Earth.
Mars Base

China Scores Historic Success as Chang'-3 Rover Lands on the Moon Today - 0 views

www.universetoday.com/...-probe-lands-on-the-moon-today

scibyte113 ChineseSpaceProgram

shared by Mars Base on 14 Dec 13 - No Cached
  • China
  • successful touchdown of the
  • Chang’e-3 probe with the ‘Yutu’ rover on the surface of the Moon
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • Dec. 14
  • the country’s first ever attempt to conduct a landing on an extraterrestrial body
  • landing on the lava filled plains of the Bay of Rainbows occurred at about 8:11 am EST or 9:11 p.m. Beijing local time
  • The Chang’e-3 lander transmitted its first images of the moon in real time during its approach to the lunar surface during the
  • landing operation
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