Did you know I brought a burrowing “mole” to mars? Strange but true -- and I’ve just released it! Here’s how @Oatmeal explained it in a comic from right before my landing:http://theoatmeal.com/comics/insight
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Replying to @NASAInSight @Oatmeal
How do you ensure that there isn’t a huge rock 5 ft below the surface that the mole won’t be able to dig through? Is the jackhammering of the mole enough to break through a big rock? Could you pull the Mole back up and try a new location?
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From https://mars.nasa.gov/insight/timeline/prelaunch/landing-site-selection/ … : For mission success, InSight’s heat flow probe must be able to penetrate the ground in the lander's workspace. The probe was designed to burrow into soil (not rock) to a depth 10 to 16 feet (three to five meters). /1
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Replying to @DavidDenhart @Physburgh and
The Thermal Imaging System (THEMIS) on NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter provided key evidence that the chosen landing site is suitable for burrowing. THEMIS observations can show how quickly the ground cools at night or warms up in sunlight. /2
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Replying to @DavidDenhart @Physburgh and
Solid rock changes temperature more slowly than softer ground. /3x
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True – plus, from studying hi-res pics of nearby craters, my team figures that bedrock is well below the 3- to 5-meter depth we hope for. The mole can push aside small rocks, and if it meets a bigger one, depending on rock shape it might edge past it and keep going.
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