In July 1969 when the US Apollo 11 mission landed on the Moon, an estimated 500 million people tuned in to watch on TV across the world. The space race between the US and the Russians had captured the public's imagination the world over. Over the next few years, though, public interest in lunar exploration began to wane and NASA space missions were no longer a television spectacle. With unmanned missions to Mars over the past few years, however, that interest is back. People are no longer glued to their television sets, but instead to their computer screens. For tonight's Phoenix lander touch down, NASA is pulling out all the stops for Internet coverage, as it expects over a 100 million people to log on.
In 2004, more than 250,000 people tuned into to watch mission control during that year's Mars mission on NASA TV, the space organization online television channel. "In 2004 there were more than 60 million unique visitors and over 550 million page views and 17.5 billion hits. Based on trends since then for our other missions and launches, we expect to see a significant increase to this, perhaps twice as much," Jeanne Holm, chief knowledge architect for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told CIO Magazine.
In addition to being broadcast to over 100 museum events across the US, NASA is broadcasting the the Phoenix landing on NASA TV and live blogging from mission control. The official mission page has a lot of great information and multimedia about the Phoenix mission, which is expected to touch down on Mars at 19:53:33 ET (just before 8 PM).
Give it a look and let us know what you thought of NASA's web coverage of the latest mission to Mars.
Comments
Subscribe to comments for this post OR Subscribe to comments for all Read/WriteWeb posts
wow can't wait to see.good luck NASA.will stick my eyes to NASA TV now.This will a great moment of happiness of all of us.
Posted by: deepak | May 25, 2008 4:04 PM
There is no doubt that Java is somehow involved directly or indirectly in the Mars Phoenix Lander's suites of built-in technologies. The Java Advanced Imaging API had been used by JPL in recent years for their space exploration programs & technologies.
Posted by: Falafulu Fisi | May 25, 2008 7:11 PM
That was so exciting! I really enjoyed watching that tonight.
Posted by: Sarah Perez
|
May 25, 2008 7:23 PM
It was indeed a nail biter. If Phoenix had burnt up, we'd be still surveying the failed Surveyor. But apparently, they never lost contact on reentry, which is normally supposed to happen, because... well... Think of the Space Shuttle. On it's reentry it loses signal as it reenters.
Posted by: Ben Lungren | May 26, 2008 7:29 AM
I enjoyed it as well. Kudos to the teams at Caltech's JPL, Lockheed Martin and the University of Arizona.
BTW, a JPL scientist was at the SemTech conference last week and he mentioned that they're looking at various ways to integrated the Semantic Web into their research endeavors and apps.
See my "Apps: On Semantic Web & Related Applications" (including intelligent agents) twine: http://www.twine.com/twine/apps .
Posted by: David Scott Lewis | May 26, 2008 9:08 AM
I am so proud! Lets do some more stuff like this!. I was a med student during the moon landing & this looks a lot tougher to me. Now lets try to get some people up there today when we can deal with the biological problems of prolonged space travel. Long term, I cant think of a better investment of our tax money! The one thing the public needs to understand is that with programs of this magnitude, there will be failures & unfortunately, loss of life. But of what great attempt has this not been true?
Posted by: Thomas N Cofer, MD | May 26, 2008 10:48 AM
When we first gazed at the moon through powerful telescopes, the moon appeared to be full of dirt and rocks. However, we were not convinced so we sent astronauts there. They brought back samples for scientists to analyze and it was confirmed that indeed, this was just dirt and rocks. However, we were not convinced so we went to the moon another dozen times or so just to really be sure it was real dirt and real rocks.
When we first gazed at Mars through powerful telescopes it appeared to be a mysterious planet. Our early flybys of this planet revealed a terrain full of dirt and rocks. However, we were not convinced so we sent Rover there. The little robotic vehicle traversed the topography sending back pictures and data and guess what? - more dirt and rocks. However, we were not convinced so we sent Phoenix there. It landed safely and started analyzing the soil and sending photos of a Martian landscape full of … dirt and rocks.
But wait, this is different. The Phoenix landed in the North Pole area in the hopes of discovering life. Its little sensors microscopically scrutinized the soil and made an amazing discovery. Mars is still full of dirt and rocks. But wait, this is different. The dirt has a pattern to it.
Posted by: Ruth Harrington | May 31, 2008 9:26 AM
God gave us a wonderful exploratory spirit and the willingness to go wherever it leads us. It has led us to the moon, Mars, and beyond, and in the process we've discovered a lot more than we ever bargained for. I can only feel sorry for those who see only "rocks and dirt" where others have been able to discover the beauty of the Creator's grand design in this beautiful, awe-inspiring universe. Ever since I watched the first men land on and walk on the surface of the moon, I've looked at our natural satellite with an even greater sense of wonder than before. I hope that I may live to see our astronauts walk upon that other ball of "dirt and rocks" and discover what secrets it may hold. Phoenix, if you'll pardon the awful pun, will only scratch the surface.
Posted by: Ken, Indian Harbour Beach FL | May 31, 2008 5:19 PM
Ruth Harrington:
Would you have said the same about Columbus and the boys 500 years ago...after all, they only discovered Rocks and Dirt also.
Stop being such a curmudgeon. Open your eyes and mind to the joy and magic and thrill of exploration. The returns are many.
Posted by: June | May 31, 2008 5:26 PM
To the "dirt and rocks" cynic - have you ever heard of Helium-3? The moon is full of it - do some reading and you will discover why that could be a very big deal someday.
Posted by: BC | May 31, 2008 5:37 PM
We need to find some signs of life, past or present. If that happens, then space will be open to us again. Right now, we're just plodding along caught up in all the 'worldly' problems. If we found 'life' on Mars, the human race would once again focus on the future: the preservation of the species.
Someday, we're going to have to become a 'multi-planet' species. We're devouring our resources on earth like there's no tomorrow. Mars is just the beginning! Go NASA!!
Posted by: Al, Turnersville, NJ | May 31, 2008 7:26 PM
Probably better to spend the money on the war?
Posted by: Pieter Van Tatenhove | May 31, 2008 7:56 PM
Ruth Harrington---
I really hope that you are some punk nerd, hoping to get some people to waste their time by responding. But if your not, and you really can't appreciate this accomplishment of mankind, then read Ephesians 4:10.
Posted by: Leland Frye | June 1, 2008 12:02 AM
Ken.
Remove the nonsense about 'god' and 'the creator's grand design', and you're spot on!
The immensity and awe-inspiring beauty and complexity of the Universe requires no such divine intervention - this primitive belief only detracts from the wonder.
Peace.
Posted by: Chris | June 1, 2008 4:42 AM
Our curious nature, and our willingness to expand our boundaries and understanding of the universe around us may be the things that save us from ourselves.
I wonder if the MD who commented about "dirt and rocks" would have been one to poke fun at Pierre and Marie Curie studying their rocks. I suspect the "MD" is no MD at all.
Posted by: George | June 1, 2008 6:57 AM
The moon landing was a proven hoax. Ditto will this Mars business soon be, as well. The only things we could learn from Mars are about the effects of global warming, which has been proven beyond all doubt. Unlike God. God is fake. He was the second shooter at Dealey Plaza.
Posted by: puddintane | June 1, 2008 7:13 AM
Above all, its evidnet that Man's curiousity (still) takes a back seat his infinite arrogance, revealing how primitive he still is. Nothing awe-inspiring about that, much less beautiful and complex.
Posted by: puddintane | June 1, 2008 7:19 AM
puddintane is a hoax and a fake and does not exist!!!
Posted by: maurice mcdonald | June 1, 2008 7:22 AM
I for one have no need of the "God" and "Creator" hypotheses and all that goes with that, but I still must admit to feeling an incredible sense of awe, of "magic", and of wonder when i see/read about these missions to Mars, the moons of Saturn, et al. Again, i am not religious in the slightest, but maybe the "Rocks and Dirt" guy should read some Alan Watts or something.. I remember something along the lines of (not an exact quote) "When you look at a planet and see rocks [and dirt] -- Watch out!" Maybe someone else here will know the Watts' talk or lecture that i'm referring to..... Whether one holds believe in a god/God or not, there is plenty of inspiration, awe, mystery, and intrigue to be found in just plain old "rocks and dirt". ^_^
Posted by: Brian | June 1, 2008 7:43 AM
We need a way to get some of that liquid methane on Titan back to earth... or better still, a way to bring LOTS of it back to earth!
Posted by: John | June 3, 2008 2:14 PM
I was busy watching the REDWINGS WIN THE CUP! WOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! HOCKEYTOWN RULES!
So how are things on Mars. Lots of dirt and rocks, huh?
Posted by: dj | June 4, 2008 8:20 PM
mars is the goal...moon was the first step..we were crazy.some people said anyway...now we have plans for a moon base..dirt and rocks...yeah ...ok =0)
my prediction will be that some chemical or ice will be found thats a 50/50
fossil will be found 100 %
terraforming 100%
humans before the time giving from nasa 79%
one last thing humans wont look the same 200%
Posted by: kaos | June 5, 2008 11:11 PM
Wow Ruth, it must be incredibly boring to live in a world like yours where there is no spirit for discovery or imagination... Or do you belong to one of those sects where touting ignorance and anti-intellectualism is a "family value"? It's a sad world.
I for one am very happy to see a renewed interest in science and technology. Less than 20% of the US population can be considered scientifically literate, hopefully that number will change with all this exciting science happening.
Coincidentally, the number of scientifically literate folks out there happen to match up with those who profess no religion! Interesting coincidence that I'm sure all the tinfoil hat crowd could make into some sophistic argument!
Posted by: Larian LeQuella | June 7, 2008 2:13 PM
Sometimes, when I read these blogs, I get the feeling there are some people who have an irrational fear whenever 'space' is the topic. Moon landing 'proven' a hoax? What proof? Prove your proof.
Each of the worlds and moons are different in their compositions. These differences may very well hold the key to new medicines, new alloys, or a heads up in understanding what is happening, or may happen to our little world.
BTW, how is it that scientists know everything that makes up a living organism, can even put it all together in the right amounts, but they cannot make it come to life. JUST WHAT is it that causes something to be alive, and where does it come from, I wonder?
Posted by: Tiberius | June 7, 2008 4:09 PM
call me stupid but im pretty sure we landed on the moon only once, lol
as for the other comments from RUTH, she prob believes every planet besides earth is just "rocks and dirt" because GOD only "blessed" the earth with life....so of course to her , space travel and exploration is a waste.
Posted by: DAVE | June 7, 2008 8:32 PM
PUDDINTANE why dont u just go die somewhere.....i think FILM of the moon landing is PROOF, whereas some news program telling us that theres global warming , which personally i think is a crock...and u believe that ....why? ...there is no proof of global warming, none...just like there was no proof of the damaged oil rigs near louisiana that they say are responsible for our higher gas prices....50 choppers in the air filming the destruction in louisiana but not one chopper could be spared to show us a damaged oil refinery.......but im sure u believe that too, dont ya? loser
Posted by: dave | June 7, 2008 8:39 PM
puddintane said...
The moon landing was a proven hoax...
The real physical proof was that Neil & Buzz left radar reflector mirrors on the moon. These reflectors are today being used to calculate the relative position of the earth in our solar system. Laser beam is fired from the earth directed to those reflectors, where the time lapsed of the beam round trip is recorded. So, the moon-earth distance can be calculated easily.
Note, to ruth and puddintane that laser or any form of radio waves cannot reflect off from the moon's rock & dirt surface. Now, this fact is taught at secondary school science subject. You need an electronic form of reflector to bounce off laser or any form of radio waves, such as those that left by the moon-landers. Here is some useful references about those reflectors.
What Neil & Buzz Left on the Moon
Laser Ranging Retro-reflector
Posted by: Falafulu Fisi | June 7, 2008 10:05 PM
I believe in God. I believe in his Son Jesus Christ as my Lord And Savior. I also belive in evolution as Gods tool. I also believe that God has given us this FANTASTIC Universe to explore! In time, I also believe that we will encounter other beings who share this vast universe with us! That is, unless we stop funding and exploring our own solar system just because all we find is "dirts and rocks". We as humans cannot continue thinking in the short term. To do so, we will not realize our full potential nor will we apreciate the gifts that God has given us. I just think of the advances we made in the Space Program from 1961 to 1969. If only we had kept up the momentum, just THINK of where we could have been NOW! Saturn? Jupiter? Sadly, we are more interested in the rise and fall of the next "starlet". It is sad.
Peace!
Posted by: Rafael | June 7, 2008 11:10 PM
Dave, I won't call you stupid, but "we" (Americans) had six successful manned missions to the moon, not one.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon_landing#American_manned_Moon_landings_.281969-1972.29
Posted by: UM | June 8, 2008 8:49 AM