Re:China's Jade Rabbit lunar rover dies on moon
by sounds on Wednesday February 12, 2014 @09:02PM
(#7228857)
Some assumptions I have to make are:
• The RTG in Yutu (the rover already up) will last that long
• Yutu does not move, get struck by a meteor, or other normal events in space that will damage it further
• The team who understands Yutu is still around in 5 years
Then China could, in theory:
• Assemble a rover with the repair parts on board
• Launch it to the moon
• Land on the moon intact
• Locate Yutu
• Do a remotely-operated repair
There's a lot of risk in each of those steps. It might be an interesting mission to push the boundaries of tele-operated robotics etc. Realistically it seems less expensive to launch a second rover that has been improved based on the lessons learned from Yutu. Hopefully China can think of lots of things to improve the second time.
• The RTG in Yutu (the rover already up) will last that long
• Yutu does not move, get struck by a meteor, or other normal events in space that will damage it further
• The team who understands Yutu is still around in 5 years
Then China could, in theory:
• Assemble a rover with the repair parts on board
• Launch it to the moon
• Land on the moon intact
• Locate Yutu
• Do a remotely-operated repair
There's a lot of risk in each of those steps. It might be an interesting mission to push the boundaries of tele-operated robotics etc. Realistically it seems less expensive to launch a second rover that has been improved based on the lessons learned from Yutu. Hopefully China can think of lots of things to improve the second time.
Interesting thought experiment, though.