Friday 4 July 2003

Trouble on the way to Mars The launch of Opportunity, NASA's second rover probe to the planet Mars has been pt back anothe 24 hours to the early hours of Monday morning (Irish time). This will given engineers an extra day to carry out further tests to make sure the cork insulation remains bonded to the launcher. Meanwhile, the ESA mission Mars Express has run into a problem. A glitch in the power supply means that only 70% of the expected electrical power is available. This will not affect the probe during its trip to Mars or its ability to enter Martian orbit. However, mission controllers say they will have to review operations once it is in orbit. However, they are confident that the probes scientific missions will be carried out successfully. 2:19:12 PM    comment []  Google It!

Driving while on the phone Here's an interesting snippet I saw on Gizmodo regarding the use of mobile phones while driving. According to a report in Cellular News US insurance company Response Insurance carried out a National Driving Distractions Survey and found some interesting data. One way of interpreting it is that driving while talking on a mobile phone is not a cause of distraction but a symptom. Compared to those drivers who do not use a phone while driving, those who do are more likely to be distracted by other things such as thinking about their next meal, relationship issues, money, job and so on. 1:19:12 PM    comment []  Google It!

© Copyright 2003 David Stewart. Last update: 02/08/2003; 00:54:37.