NASA Releases Mars Data for Maestro 1220
The Maestro Team writes "The Jet Propulsion Laboratory has released the first Mars data update for Maestro, containing images just received from the Spirit Mars rover. Maestro is the public version of the actual tool used by the mission scientists to operate the rover. You can download Maestro and the latest Mars images from the official Maestro site, and join the developers and other users in #maestro on irc.freenode.net."
Re:Welcome Slashdotters! (Score:1, Insightful)
Some of the channel regulars are responsible for setting up the FAQ [firasd.org] which should be one of the first stops if you have questions about Maestro.
Why are we doing this? (Score:0, Insightful)
How does this advance Man in ways that benefit the body, the Family of Man? Will it feed people or solve the mystery of AIDS? Will it allow old people to get their meds cheaper? Isn't there better ways to spend billions of dollars that benefit mankind in a more substantial way?
The International Space Station has so much more promise to benefit our everyday life, yet it is now just a footnote, almost forgotten. We should be concentrating on ideas that benefit mankind in tangible ways.
Re:Why are we doing this? (Score:5, Insightful)
Sure, it may not be solving some of the current problems, as you have brought up, but a better understanding of the universe is sure to have paybacks, even though they may not be immediate or blindingly obvious.
If the Mars rovers do find evidence of past life, however unlinkely it is, it will change everything.
Re:Why are we doing this? (Score:4, Insightful)
The Mars Rover program is the most recent expression of an old human need, to explore and to understand. Your arguments could be used to disparage all pure science, pure mathematics, and other human pursuits without immediate practical application, but they are much of what makes us human. Along the way, technology gets advanced in ways that produce the famous "spinoff" that eventually improve the lives of many people.
Think of the advances in autonomous robotics that are on display with the rovers! These little beings are out there, 10 light minutes away, and able to handle many situations for themselves safely. Robots with capabilities like these will help with oil recovery in the deep ocean, work in nuclear power plants, assist surgeons, and many other activities.
In my opinion, and of many others, the ISS is a white elephant, that has no purpose to speak of at present. It is diverting huge amounts of funds from much more important scientific pursuits, like robotic solar system exploration. On to Mars, the asteroids, and beyond!
My $.02
Re:Why are we doing this? (Score:1, Insightful)
That said, spending a fraction of that on efforts to increase human knowledge and understanding (rather than bombs and bodies) is even more likely to have a profound positive effect on culture and our species.
Re:Why are we doing this? (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Disappointed by all the spam.... (Score:2, Insightful)
Don't Be Discouraged (Score:5, Insightful)
Moreover, trust that your link will be getting all the attention it needs. I noticed your download links far up in the discussion (inside the crapflood taht is), and I'm sure others have as well.
Hopefully the moderators will be on the ball tonight -- at least they can easily see where the spam is.
No worries though, you've got an awesome piece of software, and I'm as eager as anybody to see it in action.
Thanks!
Re:Why are we doing this? (Score:1, Insightful)
The question you are intimating: "why should space exploration be a priority when people here on Earth are still starving, dying and living in mistery?" Is much more challenging and I don't know that I can offer a really good answer except that, as a species, we have an urge to explore and expand and that, as priorities go, exploration ranks a lot higher than say bombing third-world countries.
To put things in perspective, the US military spends the equivalent of entire cost of the Beagle 2 mission every 45 minutes and NASA's yearly budget every two weeks. How does that expenditure contribute to the advancement of Man or even the specific men it is ostensibly in aid of?
I agree that priorities are messed up. I just disagree about which ones.
Re:Why are we doing this? (Score:5, Insightful)
Okay, I'll bite. I'm seeing a stream of "What use is this?" and "big deal, more red rocks" comments on the Rover topics, and I can't even imagine where these are coming from: