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Did anyone see this documentary that came out circa 2005 ish?


I thought it was interesting, but I was most interested in the probes.


I mean, why are we STILL sending rovers? to Mars?

Is it not within our ability to send a UAV?

I liked the idea of a blimp because they can still cover way more ground than a rover, but loiter pretty much as long as they want.


Tho I have no clue what the challenges would be in sending a hydrogen blimp to Mars; maybe a blimp only made sense on Darwin 4 (fictional planet in the documentary of course) because of its dense, hydrogen saturated atmosphere, maybe it couldn't work on a place as dry as Mars.

I saw it, I think it was way way to much specualtion, also Mars has some pretty nasty weather.

Teaos wrote:I saw it, I think it was way way to much specualtion, also Mars has some pretty nasty weather.

I dunno, the probes took quite a beeting from weather on Darwin, there was that one shot where they were crossing the amoeba sea where they ran into that dust storm. But then again, speculation as you said.

One, it would have to be a blimp. Mar's atmosphere is so thin that a conventional fixed wing UAV would be almost impossible. By the time you lightened the thing enough to be able to fly you'd have almost no scientific payload. Blimps are better as you're not dependent upon your speed to generate lift and it's much easier to just build a bigger balloon than a bigger airplane. The problem is the local weather. While the air is incredibly thin it also moves very very fast with 300mph winds not being uncommon. That wind is also usually laden with dust which will abraid your balloon, cover up your solar panels, and just make life miserable.

Rovers are easier, and more reliable, and at the moment able to answer the questions we're asking. A roving blimp with a camera might let you get a better view of many martian surface features from an interesting angle but you're not going to be examining rocks and such with it.

Remember though that although Mars atmosphere is this it is also only a third of the gravity.

Yes, but it's air pressure is only 0.7% Earth's. The gravity helps but the air pressure is what kills. There's just not enough air for wings to work without them being huge and the load small and when wings get that long and light then you have issues with them surviving when the winds pick up. Blimp really is your best shot.