JADE RABBIT MOON ROVER OFFICIALLY DEAD – OR IS IT?
by Hazed
There was confusion a few weeks ago about the fate of the Chinese moon rover, Jade rabbit. Was it dead, or not?
At the end of January, the rover suffered a “mechanical control abnormality” which experts said was the result of a “complicated surface environment”. Commentators speculated that the problem was with the electrical motors that close the solar panels. If true, this would have been very bad news because if the panels stay open during the lunar night, the rover’s internal electrical components could freeze and become irrevocably damaged.
On 12 February, the China Daily printed a brief news despatch saying that Jade Rabbit had been declared permanently lost. The rover was dead.
But the following day the Chinese state media contradicted that report, saying that the rover could potentially be saved. It had “awoken” from its scheduled dormancy and “stands a chance of being saved.” It was able to pick up signals from Earth, and radio amateurs reporting picking up its transmissions back to ground control.
The report said that experts were still trying to work out what caused the malfunction. There is speculation that it could have been due to a build-up of sticky dust on the lunar surface.
Jade Rabbit is China’s first lunar rover. It landed on the moon on December 15 and was expected to keep going for three months. We’ll have to wait and see whether it really can be revived.
Source: http://io9.com/chinas-jade-rabbit-moon-rover-has-been-lost-1521264033
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-26153520
