# 3000 Sols for the Mars Rover Opportunity! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 3, 2012, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047 "2012-07-03T00:01:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/1 "2012-07-03T00:01:53Z")
[The Rover That Could](http://roadtoendeavour.wordpress.com/2012/07/02/three-thousand-sols/)! 3000 martian days operating on the martian surface! I’m impressed. It was supposed to last 90. Huzzah for Opportunity. And a moment of silent reflection for Spirit! ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/2 "2012-07-03T00:09:45Z")
In Spirit’s honor, I’ll link the much better [rewrite](http://imgs.xkcd.com/blag/spirit_rewrite_unknown_author.png) of the downer version of Spirit’s fate that [xkcd did](http://xkcd.com/695/). Go, Oppy! ---
**Author:** ![Yumblie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/76d3ee/32.png) [@Yumblie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yumblie)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/3 "2012-07-03T05:22:02Z")
I remember when the first high-def surface image was beamed in from Spirit. I was mesmerized by it. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/4 "2012-07-03T07:21:57Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > In Spirit’s honor, I’ll link the much better [rewrite](http://imgs.xkcd.com/blag/spirit_rewrite_unknown_author.png) of the downer version of Spirit’s fate that [xkcd did](http://xkcd.com/695/). > > Go, Oppy! Well fuck, that was depressing. I also think that’s how _Wall•E_ should’ve ended. ---
**Author:** ![sparky\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/77aa72/32.png) [@sparky\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sparky_1)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 8:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/5 "2012-07-03T08:39:39Z")
Just another month until the Mars Science Laboratory lands! How cool is that? ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/6 "2012-07-03T09:09:05Z")
It amazes me how these stories aren’t THE headlines over what some president/dictator did or who’s rioting over oppression or a sports game and we have all this to explore. The universe, to me. always lpoked like a board game with Earth as the “Start HERE” square and the rest of the playing board unfinished. ---
**Author:** ![Icerigger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icerigger/32/432_2.png) [@Icerigger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icerigger)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/7 "2012-07-03T10:27:49Z")
In addition it has traversed over 20 miles, I think that is impressive as well. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Knig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@Typo\_Knig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Knig)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/8 "2012-07-03T11:07:34Z")
That’s 33 TIMES the original mission of 90 days. Astounding! I remember sitting at my desk downloading images from the Pathfinder rover. Yes, I was in my office with my computing device looking at THREE-DEE PICTURES FROM MARS! 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/9 "2012-07-03T12:03:45Z")
> [@Locrian](#): > > The universe, to me. always lpoked like a board game with Earth as the “Start HERE” square and the rest of the playing board unfinished. May I use that for my sig? PM the address to send royalties to, please… ---
**Author:** ![Sudden\_Kestrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Sudden\_Kestrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sudden_Kestrel)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/10 "2012-07-03T12:06:11Z")
Hey, wait a minute. My mom told me Spirit went to a live on a farm on Venus. Carry on, Opportunity. If ever a machine deserved citizenship… ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/11 "2012-07-03T12:31:49Z")
> [@sparky\_1](#): > > Just another month until the Mars Science Laboratory lands! > > How cool is that? That will depend on the nature of the landing. I can’t believe how bloody complicated the whole delivery procedure is. Ballistic entry -\> parachute -\> rocket decel -\> rocket hover -\> sky crane -\> set down. If they end up with a funtional rover when it’s done, yes, that’ll be damn cool, but it seems like they’ve given themselves long odds… ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Knig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@Typo\_Knig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Knig)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/12 "2012-07-03T13:48:56Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > That will depend on the nature of the landing. I can’t believe how bloody complicated the whole delivery procedure is. Ballistic entry -\> parachute -\> rocket decel -\> rocket hover -\> sky crane -\> set down. If they end up with a funtional rover when it’s done, yes, that’ll be damn cool, but it seems like they’ve given themselves long odds… It’s not that different from Pathfinder, Spirit and Opportunity. But, yes, very complex. The mission director for Pathfinder prepared a statement for when it crash landed, but did not prepare a statement for a successful landing. He didn’t think it would work, and he was running the project! ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/13 "2012-07-03T14:00:00Z")
Heh. Niel Armstrong’s first words in an alternate universe: “Holy Shit, I’m still alive!” ---
**Author:** ![sparky\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/77aa72/32.png) [@sparky\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sparky_1)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2012, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3000-sols-for-the-mars-rover-opportunity/627047/14 "2012-07-03T14:09:16Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > That will depend on the nature of the landing. I can’t believe how bloody complicated the whole delivery procedure is. Ballistic entry -\> parachute -\> rocket decel -\> rocket hover -\> sky crane -\> set down. If they end up with a funtional rover when it’s done, yes, that’ll be damn cool, but it seems like they’ve given themselves long odds… “Hey, hold my beer and watch this…” comes to mind. Just imagine the info we’ll get if it succeeds. Should make for a very interesting next few years.