{"id":32678,"date":"2022-06-16T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-16T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=32678"},"modified":"2022-07-12T14:57:20","modified_gmt":"2022-07-12T14:57:20","slug":"martian-dust-means-insights-end-is-in-sight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/2022\/06\/16\/martian-dust-means-insights-end-is-in-sight\/","title":{"rendered":"Martian dust means InSight\u2019s end is in sight"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
Dusty solar panels on the Insight lander<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

The InSight lander <\/strong>is losing its battle with Martian dust, and is now expected to reach the end of its science mission this summer, NASA has announced. The lander\u2019s solar panels are now so dusty that they produce only 10 per cent of the 5,000 Watt-hours of power they did when the six-metre-wide robot first arrived on the planet.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

The issue of dust build-up blocking solar panels has been known since the Viking missions of the 1970s. The Spirit and Opportunity rovers were spared InSight\u2019s fate as their solar panels were cleaned at random intervals by gusts of wind. InSight \u2013 astationary platform located near the planet\u2019s pole \u2013 hasn\u2019t been so lucky. <\/span>To preserve power, the InSight team has positioned the lander\u2019s robot arm in a \u2018retirement pose\u2019 where it can still take images of the surrounding area without having to move.<\/p>\n\n

The spacecraft will continue to use its seismometer to hunt for marsquakes. Since landing on 26 November 2018, it has detected more than 1,300 tremors, helping to build up an image of the inner structure of Mars and its crust, mantle and core. <\/span>https:\/\/mars.nasa.gov\/insight<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Photo: NASA\/JPL-Caltech<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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