Word: shipping
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...Weighing more than a ton before fueling and more than twice that with its tanks full, MRO is one of the biggest ships ever hurled towards Mars. Part of the reason for the heft is the suite of instruments it carries, including the largest diameter telescopic camera ever sent to another planet; ground-penetrating radar able to look beneath the Martian surface; and a climate sounder, able to study the atmosphere in both visible and invisible spectra. The ship will also carry a new-generation navigational camera and communications system, to be field-tested for the first time...
...Should the liftoff take place as planned, it will be another 15 months before the spacecraft settles into its low, circular orbit around Mars. After that, it will have a full two years to conduct its surveillance work - a long life for a robot ship, and one that should return a rich trove of science...
...unstable is the country? Our ship is leaky, old, and there's stormy weather out there. It has not yet sunk, but it is floundering. So when we see a hole, for God's sake, let's plug the hole...
...WHAT IS GAP FILLER AND WHY IS IT A PROBLEM? The underside of the shuttle flexes during the stress and heating of reentry. To prevent the rigid tiles from grinding or chipping, heat resistant cloth is fitted between them. Ordinarily, the filler is flush with the ship, all but invisible to the eye. But on Discovery, two pieces are protruding near the nose-one 1.1 inch, the other .06 inch, and need to be snipped away...
...WILL THE FILLER BE TRIMMED? Robinson will secure his feet to the end of the shuttle?s manipulator arm and be lowered under the nose of the ship-a place where spacewalking astronauts have never ventured. His first attempted fix will be a decidedly low-tech one: He?ll try to pluck the fabric free. If that doesn?t work, he?ll use a blade-a portion of which has been taped over to prevent it from nicking the ship. If that fails, he?ll try a small...