It's alive! Space hackers fire up zombie Sun probe's engines An international team of space geeks has successfully fired up the engines of long-defunct NASA satellite ISEE-3. Now the gang says it'll try to kick the bird into an Earth orbit that will enable it to carry on performing the mission it was launched for 36 years ago. ISEE-3 team celebrates Team celebrates the rocket's red …
> It's the first time the ISEE-3's engines have been fired since 1987
That's friggin' amazing in anyone's language.
It's been drifting round in the cold of space, for years, probably got hit by high-energy this and that.
And it still starts up first time :D
That bought a smile to my face.
...and I was feeling smug when my Royal Enfield 'Classic' 350 started third kick after wintering in the shed for several months!
So: Well Done!!! to all the guys/girls who built it in the first place - and to the amazingly motivated resuscitation team! Brilliant. And good luck with the rest of it. :-)
"That's friggin' amazing in anyone's language.
It's been drifting round in the cold of space, for years, probably got hit by high-energy this and that."
What you're looking at is a pair of fluid tanks linked to a pair of pressure tanks linked by a set of valves. In extreme cases just a couple of tanks with the pressurant separated by a bladder in the same tank. The liquids ignite on contact.
That's about as simple as it gets.
"What you're looking at is a pair of fluid tanks linked to a pair of pressure tanks linked by a set of valves. In extreme cases just a couple of tanks with the pressurant separated by a bladder in the same tank. The liquids ignite on contact.
That's about as simple as it gets."
TL:DR version. It takes a very good understanding of engineering to design such a system that works after decades. in deep space. Mostly it's learning what to leave out (like pumps and an ignition system).
> What you're looking at is a pair of fluid tanks linked to a pair of pressure tanks linked by a set of valves. In extreme cases just a couple of tanks with the pressurant separated by a bladder in the same tank. The liquids ignite on contact.
That's about as simple as it gets.
With all due respect, I think that's a bit of an over- simplification.
That's the mechanical bit at the back end. There's also a receiver, a power source that evidently still works. There are servos to operate the valve presumably.
Fair dos, they have to keep it as simple as possible and a few decades ago, that was the only option anyways.
I still think it's pretty awesome/
That they got the old bird to fire it's thrusters is amazing in and of itself and a testimony to the design and build teams. Hopefully, the main engine will fire and get it where they want it. If any of the instruments work, even more than amazing.
If it sends data, will there be any place capable of receiving it? Processing it? Does NASA have any interest at all? I would hope the answers are yes but since the current crew at NASA didn't invent it, they may not give a crap.
It doesn't have a main engine as such, just several different sets of thrusters, there's an overview here:
http://spacecollege.org/isee3/isee-3-propulsion-system-overview.html
It is already sending data, and while the reboot team has been using Arecibo and Bochum to communicate with ISEE, NASA's DSN has also been tracking it (mainly for ranging purposes), and many amateur groups around the world have picked up signals from the craft.
http://spacecollege.org/isee3/jovenes-por-el-espacio-grupo-mexico-listens-to-isee-3.html
NASA does have an interest in the craft, but they only have a certain amount of money, and they're also trying to support a lot of other missions with that money (eg both Voyagers). They've signed an agreement under the Space Act with the reboot team, and have been providing them with information and access to the DSN amongst other things.
I've talked to folks who seem to think crowdfunding is a fad that will never produce anything more exciting than a pot of potato salad. Projects like this show what's possible when a group of smart, dedicated, and determined folks, supported by a lot of people who believe what they're doing is worthwhile, attempt something amazing.
>I've talked to folks who seem to think crowdfunding is a fad that will never produce anything more exciting than a pot of potato salad.
Well, that's the attitude one is tempted to adopt when something is hyped extensively in the media... yet the truth is usually somewhere between the status quo and the disruptive arrival.
Crowd-funding seems to be nowt but a happy compromise between consuming what we are offered and investing in interesting companies in the traditional way.
Who here would watch a pay-per-view manned mission to Mars? I would. Sheeiit, choose the right crew and even the people who watch Big Brother would tune in.
the software radio 'hardware' and four really slick transformers for the various dishes, also the DSN is at least 20 grand to even get a project on the table, its basically the only way to reliably talk to anything outside of earth orbit.
also you know - flights to Costa Rica and like a bathtub of champagne
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"Wow, it works after about 17 years" when we should be saying, "Wow, we haven't been using it in 17 years."
We spend so much time, money, and effort on these space projects to not make the most of them. The Voyager I and II are still trucking along after more than 30+ years of service, but most modern space projects have been designed with a castrated shelf-life. I'm sick of reading about a million dollar NASA supercomputer wasting away in a data center or abandoned/destroyed satellites with short lifespans. Capitalize on our investment and quit wasting resources.
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