Drones on Mars

I'd be surprised to see this get off the ground (pun intended :P). Fuel is one of the largest concerns that we have with a satellites sustainability. Using batteries in this way will also be very hard on them, solar panels would have to generate a lot of power and you don't gain much more than a decent imaging and radar satellite would.

It just wouldn't have the sustainability that many other platforms would have. Some sort of VTOL plane might have more, but still wouldn't be all that great. I guess we'll see, I'd love to see some of the software written for their platform published on the ESA github page :P
 
wafflejock said:
They're gonna need to start planning missions to go replace props a few minutes after the first flight if experience is any indicator.
Click to expand...
For most satellites we have around 4 duplicate/redundant systems which usually failover automatically. Maybe an X 16 configuration would be ideal :P
 
Yeah really just kidding. Not sure what they'll make the props from just found this write up on a mars aircraft proposal with some numbers but is for a winged aircraft (they say using carbon fiber props), still interesting to see the data in the tables and parts of the write up I can understand:

https://www.researchgate.net/profil...ller-Driven-Aircraft-for-Mars-Exploration.pdf

The air in Mars atmosphere is thinner than Earth so they'll get less thrust from pushing through/off the air but will also have a little less gravity to contend with from the "official" video here it looks like they're actually going with some sort of helicopter like design but props counter rotating in the center so I guess less complexity and just giving up roll and pitch authority to keep things simple (no barrel rolls or power loops on mars :( )

https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/mars-helicopter-to-fly-on-nasa-s-next-red-planet-rover-mission

---

Actually watching it again I wonder how they are controlling the pitch/roll at all. The yaw still makes sense by adjusting the relative speed of the props stacked on top of each other but not sure how it's tipping really, maybe collective control or something tilting the craft below the props (and vice versa).
 
Last edited:
If I had the dosh, I'd do it with balloons on a rotating helium injection system.
Wind direction sensor.
You would cover more distance get better pictures. Just wouldn't last as long. GoPro_Balloon_s-1024x689.jpg
And I'd be brewsterd.
Tell you lot each balloon cost a million & we got 16 of them along with some 16 special gopros.
On second thoughts it may give the game away when they float into Canadian airspace.
 
I watched the new Netflix version. Wow, the robot is a scary dude! In the original series, he was more like comic relief.

Even as a child, I wondered:

"They're lost in space, yet they always have brand-new clothes, and what ever planet they find themselves on, they eat outside?
 
Lone, your avatar looks like you got it from the wall at the post office. You must have been concentrating on flying when the photo was taken.
 
Actually, that's a photo of me when I was 21 years old. I was a motorcyclist, civilian patroller and a bad boy! Now, I'm just some old guy who is still trying to keep his quad out of the tree!
 
Back
Top