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- Newsgroups: comp.robotics
- Path: sparky!uunet!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!wupost!udel!rochester!cantaloupe.srv.cs.cmu.edu!news
- From: fitz@frc.ri.cmu.edu (Kerien Fitzpatrick)
- Subject: Dante Update from the FRC
- Message-ID: <Bzzxu2.BMt.2@cs.cmu.edu>
- Sender: news@cs.cmu.edu (Usenet News System)
- Nntp-Posting-Host: dirt.frc.ri.cmu.edu
- Reply-To: fitz@frc.ri.cmu.edu
- Organization: Field Robotics Center, Carnegie Mellon University
- Date: Tue, 29 Dec 1992 01:08:25 GMT
- Lines: 148
-
- I've compiled a couple of the updates that we are receiving from FRC
- personnel at Goddard Space Flight Center. These updates are to be
- considered "unofficial" whose purpose is to provide additional information
- to interested parties. Another colleague that just returned from Goddard
- said the video feed is fantastic even though it isn't frame rate.
-
- For those that are not aware of why a robot is being used here is some
- more info. Erebus is active and can erupt at any time in addition to the
- unpredictability of the weather which can change drastically in a short
- period of time. For these reasons, human access was curtailed.
- -------------------------------
-
- Newsgroups: frc.general
- From: Jim Osborn <oz>
- Subject: satellite link established!
- Organization: frc.general
- Distribution: local
- Date: Sun, 27 Dec 92 22:01:40 GMT
-
- (I am sending this message from the POCC at Goddard Space Flight
- Center.)
-
- At 2102, Day 362 GMT, the first live television images were sent from
- Mt. Erebus to Goddard Space Flight Center. Image quality is quite
- good. All in all, the test is going well, though we lost the signal
- three times during the last one-hour event - cause unknown.
-
- News from the ice:
-
- Dante is assembled and has taken a few steps. The group seems to be
- in good shape. The current plan is to go up the mountain as soon as
- the weather clears a little (a lot of fog at the summit). Temperature
- on Erebus is generally between -15 and -25 C; wind speeds early today
- were 20 knots, gusting to 50 knots.
-
- The following is from the typed dialog between Goddard and Erebus
- during this most recent (and very successful) TDRSS test.
-
- "Phil Kyle is buttoning up the science package and Eric is closing up
- the [computing] enclosure. Last night, Dante got caught in a hard,
- cold wind. Everything [computers] booted fine. However, we noticed
- intermittent problems with the level wind on the tether reel.
- Troubleshooting that now. Planning to force last solutions on
- everything in the next two hours. Then out and up."
-
- "We're committed to a descent route. Many challenges. The ascent
- route is straightforward but will require significant sustained effort,
- possibly over several days, starting now."
-
- "The route from the hut to the summit went surprisingly well. It is
- [now] named "Robot Valley". The power station and people shuttl[ing]
- are easy."
-
- "The robot ascent route is complicated by subjective concerns for holes
- and ice caves. We've reconn'ed it well and are ready to go."
-
- "You will not have direct view of most of the ascent. We'll can some
- video and send that along."
-
-
- -----------------------
-
- Newsgroups: frc.general
- From: James Osborn <oz>
- Subject: Sunday evening news
- Organization: frc.general
- Distribution: local
- Date: Mon, 28 Dec 92 17:05:38 GMT
-
- [I am sending this message from Goddard during the third and final
- TDRSS test for day 362.]
-
- I am watching live video coming from one of Dante's foot observation
- cameras through the robot's fiber optic telemetry system (aka the
- "DataRocket"). This transmission verifies that we will be able to get
- live video from Dante's cameras back to Goddard.
-
- We are now watching a videotape that the team recorded on (their)
- Thursday of the crew bringing Dante out of the hut onboard Geryon. The
- purpose of them bringing it out was for a "cold soak" - to verify
- that Dante could be brought to life after being outside in the very
- cold. (Dante passed this test: the heaters inside the computing
- enclosure worked well and the computers were able to boot with no
- problem. We have yet to get "hard numbers" on how long Dante was cold
- soaked, how long the heaters were on prior to computer startup, etc.)
-
- Now back to live video. Just saw one of Dante's feet touch the
- ground. Dante is now standing up so the crew can turn Geryon
- around.
-
- NOTES FROM RED:
- Science package is now buttoned up.
- Dante is outside the hut now
- (END OF TRANSMISSION)
- --------------
- The team should be getting Dante to the rim over the next three days.
- Since the rim area is boulder-strewn, it's actually expected to take
- that long. Thus, Dante's descent ought to begin on or about Wednesday.
- --------------
- For your information, here's how the link from Mt. Erebus to Goddard
- is set up.
-
- A local video source (e.g., one of Dante's cameras or a VCR playing
- taped images) connects to a digitizer/image compression board inside
- one of Dante's base station computers. That computer also has a high
- speed serial port that allows to be interfaced to the digital part of
- the satellite link. The digital equipment is connected to RF
- equipment which sends a signal from the antenna on Mt Erebus to a
- satellite named TDRS-5 that's in geosynchrous orbit over the equator
- at 174 degrees West longitude. Data is sent from the satellite to a
- ground station in White Sands, NM and to Goddard via another
- communications satellite. We have a 9600 bit/second link from Goddard
- to Erebus (the forward link) and a 1.5 million bit/second link in the
- other direction. We communicate to the team on Erebus by connecting a
- computer in our mission control to a computer in the Erebus base
- station and using a program that allows users to type messages in at
- each end. (Though they have an Inmarsat terminal that allows voice
- communications, it's quite expensive and power hungry, so we don't use
- it much.)
-
- Scheduled satellite events:
- MONDAY 12/28
- 4:20 - 5:00 PM EST
- 5:50 - 6:50 PM EST
-
- TUESDAY 12/29
- 3:45 - 4:55 PM EST
- 5:50 - 6:35 PM EST (backup event)
-
- WEDNESDAY 12/30
- 3:30 - 5:00 PM EST
- 5:25 - 6:20 PM EST (backup event)
-
-
- -----------------------------
-
- Please remember that all information regarding scheduled satellite events in
- this post are not to be considered official.
-
- ---
- Kerien Fitzpatrick Pittsburgh, PA 15213
- Field Robotics Center (412)268-6564
- The Robotics Institute Internet: fitz@frc.ri.cmu.edu
- Carnegie Mellon University
-
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