• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Mars rover says: 'good evening gale crater!'

W1zzard

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
May 14, 2004
Messages
26,956 (3.71/day)
Processor Ryzen 7 5700X
Memory 48 GB
Video Card(s) RTX 4080
Storage 2x HDD RAID 1, 3x M.2 NVMe
Display(s) 30" 2560x1600 + 19" 1280x1024
Software Windows 10 64-bit
just to clarify, the power source is not a nuclear reactor in the sense of a commercial power plant.

curiosity uses the heat from (quickly decaying) radioactive stuff to generate electricity using thermocouples. there are no moving parts, no cooling loop, no material is consumed or exhaust.

it produces just 125 W
 

TheMailMan78

Big Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2007
Messages
22,599 (3.68/day)
Location
'Merica. The Great SOUTH!
System Name TheMailbox 5.0 / The Mailbox 4.5
Processor RYZEN 1700X / Intel i7 2600k @ 4.2GHz
Motherboard Fatal1ty X370 Gaming K4 / Gigabyte Z77X-UP5 TH Intel LGA 1155
Cooling MasterLiquid PRO 280 / Scythe Katana 4
Memory ADATA RGB 16GB DDR4 2666 16-16-16-39 / G.SKILL Sniper Series 16GB DDR3 1866: 9-9-9-24
Video Card(s) MSI 1080 "Duke" with 8Gb of RAM. Boost Clock 1847 MHz / ASUS 780ti
Storage 256Gb M4 SSD / 128Gb Agelity 4 SSD , 500Gb WD (7200)
Display(s) LG 29" Class 21:9 UltraWide® IPS LED Monitor 2560 x 1080 / Dell 27"
Case Cooler Master MASTERBOX 5t / Cooler Master 922 HAF
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec / SupremeFX X-Fi with Bose Companion 2 speakers.
Power Supply Seasonic FOCUS Plus Series SSR-750PX 750W Platinum / SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold
Mouse SteelSeries Sensei (RAW) / Logitech G5
Keyboard Razer BlackWidow / Logitech (Unknown)
Software Windows 10 Pro (64-bit)
Benchmark Scores Benching is for bitches.
just to clarify, the power source is not a nuclear reactor in the sense of a commercial power plant.

curiosity uses the heat from (quickly decaying) radioactive stuff to generate electricity using thermocouples. there are no moving parts, no cooling loop, no material is consumed or exhaust.

it produces just 125 W

The flux capacitor powers the turbo nabulator Tesla engine to be precise.


Anyway......I'm assuming Uranium or is that to slow a decay? I have read ZERO on this.
 

FordGT90Concept

"I go fast!1!11!1!"
Joined
Oct 13, 2008
Messages
26,259 (4.65/day)
Location
IA, USA
System Name BY-2021
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5800X (65w eco profile)
Motherboard MSI B550 Gaming Plus
Cooling Scythe Mugen (rev 5)
Memory 2 x Kingston HyperX DDR4-3200 32 GiB
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT
Storage Samsung 980 Pro, Seagate Exos X20 TB 7200 RPM
Display(s) Nixeus NX-EDG274K (3840x2160@144 DP) + Samsung SyncMaster 906BW (1440x900@60 HDMI-DVI)
Case Coolermaster HAF 932 w/ USB 3.0 5.25" bay + USB 3.2 (A+C) 3.5" bay
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1150, Micca OriGen+
Power Supply Enermax Platimax 850w
Mouse Nixeus REVEL-X
Keyboard Tesoro Excalibur
Software Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Benchmark Scores Faster than the tortoise; slower than the hare.
It uses plutonium-238 which has a half-life of 87.7 years. It loses 0.787% power output every year.

If your 125w figure is correct, everything I see says it will produce about 100w in 14 years. 100w is the minimum required to operate, apparently.
 
Joined
Sep 1, 2010
Messages
7,023 (1.42/day)
According to NASA, the images needed to be reduced by a factor of eight in order for them to be sent back to Earth quickly. Higher resolution images (1600 by 1200) will be beamed to Earth in the coming months.

Gotta wait ...
 

FordGT90Concept

"I go fast!1!11!1!"
Joined
Oct 13, 2008
Messages
26,259 (4.65/day)
Location
IA, USA
System Name BY-2021
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5800X (65w eco profile)
Motherboard MSI B550 Gaming Plus
Cooling Scythe Mugen (rev 5)
Memory 2 x Kingston HyperX DDR4-3200 32 GiB
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT
Storage Samsung 980 Pro, Seagate Exos X20 TB 7200 RPM
Display(s) Nixeus NX-EDG274K (3840x2160@144 DP) + Samsung SyncMaster 906BW (1440x900@60 HDMI-DVI)
Case Coolermaster HAF 932 w/ USB 3.0 5.25" bay + USB 3.2 (A+C) 3.5" bay
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1150, Micca OriGen+
Power Supply Enermax Platimax 850w
Mouse Nixeus REVEL-X
Keyboard Tesoro Excalibur
Software Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Benchmark Scores Faster than the tortoise; slower than the hare.
Yeah, because of the distance, they have to use low-bandwidth tranmission signals. It will take a long time for them to send and they can probably only do that when it isn't sending information needed to operate it.

Black and white pictures take 1/3rd the bandwidth to transmit.
 
Joined
Dec 27, 2007
Messages
8,518 (1.43/day)
Location
Kansas City
System Name The Dove Box Rev 3.0
Processor i7 8700k @ 4.7GHz
Motherboard Asus Maximus X APEX
Cooling Custom water loop
Memory 16GB 3600 MHz DDR4
Video Card(s) 2x MSI 780 Ti's in SLI
Storage 500GB Samsung 850 PCIe SSD, 4TB
Display(s) 27" Asus 144Hz
Case Enermax Fulmo GT
Audio Device(s) ON BOARD FTW
Power Supply Corsair 1200W
Keyboard Logitech G510
Software Win 10 64x
Will the XBand comm transmit the Hi-RES shots or will it relay off the orbiting ones like the current pictures?

Just ripped this about the main camera(1 of 17 btw):

Mast Camera (MastCam)


The two cameras of the MastCamera system
The MastCam, MAHLI, and MARDI cameras were developed by Malin Space Science Systems and they all share common design components, such as on-board electronic imaging processing boxes, 1600×1200 CCDs, and a RGB Bayer pattern filter.[40][41][42][43][44][45] The MastCam system provides multiple spectra and true color imaging with two cameras.[41] The cameras can take true color images at 1600×1200 pixels and up to 10 frames per second hardware-compressed, high-definition video at 720p (1280×720). One camera is the Medium Angle Camera (MAC), which has a 34 mm focal length, a 15-degree field of view, and can yield 22 cm/pixel scale at 1 km. The other camera is the Narrow Angle Camera (NAC), which has a 100 mm focal length, a 5.1-degree field of view, and can yield 7.4 cm/pixel scale at 1 km.[41] Malin also developed a pair of Mastcams with zoom lenses,[46] but these were not included in the final design because of the time required to test the new hardware and the looming November 2011 launch date.[47] Each camera has 8 GB of flash memory, which is capable of storing over 5,500 raw images, and can apply real time lossless or JPEG compression.[41] The cameras have an autofocus capability that allows them to focus on objects from 2.1 m (6 ft 11 in) to infinity.[44] In addition to the fixed RGGB Bayer pattern filter, each camera has an 8-position filter wheel. While the Bayer filter reduces visible light throughput, all three colors are mostly transparent at wavelengths longer than 700 nm, and have minimal effect on such infrared observations.[41] In comparison to the 1024×1024 black and white panoramic cameras used on the Mars Exploration Rover (MER), the MAC MastCam has 1.25× higher spatial resolution and the NAC MastCam has 3.67× higher spatial resolution.[44]
 

TheMailMan78

Big Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2007
Messages
22,599 (3.68/day)
Location
'Merica. The Great SOUTH!
System Name TheMailbox 5.0 / The Mailbox 4.5
Processor RYZEN 1700X / Intel i7 2600k @ 4.2GHz
Motherboard Fatal1ty X370 Gaming K4 / Gigabyte Z77X-UP5 TH Intel LGA 1155
Cooling MasterLiquid PRO 280 / Scythe Katana 4
Memory ADATA RGB 16GB DDR4 2666 16-16-16-39 / G.SKILL Sniper Series 16GB DDR3 1866: 9-9-9-24
Video Card(s) MSI 1080 "Duke" with 8Gb of RAM. Boost Clock 1847 MHz / ASUS 780ti
Storage 256Gb M4 SSD / 128Gb Agelity 4 SSD , 500Gb WD (7200)
Display(s) LG 29" Class 21:9 UltraWide® IPS LED Monitor 2560 x 1080 / Dell 27"
Case Cooler Master MASTERBOX 5t / Cooler Master 922 HAF
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec / SupremeFX X-Fi with Bose Companion 2 speakers.
Power Supply Seasonic FOCUS Plus Series SSR-750PX 750W Platinum / SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold
Mouse SteelSeries Sensei (RAW) / Logitech G5
Keyboard Razer BlackWidow / Logitech (Unknown)
Software Windows 10 Pro (64-bit)
Benchmark Scores Benching is for bitches.
It uses plutonium-238 which has a half-life of 87.7 years. It loses 0.787% power output every year.

If your 125w figure is correct, everything I see says it will produce about 100w in 14 years. 100w is the minimum required to operate, apparently.

Plutonium? Really? No cooling?
 
Joined
Dec 27, 2007
Messages
8,518 (1.43/day)
Location
Kansas City
System Name The Dove Box Rev 3.0
Processor i7 8700k @ 4.7GHz
Motherboard Asus Maximus X APEX
Cooling Custom water loop
Memory 16GB 3600 MHz DDR4
Video Card(s) 2x MSI 780 Ti's in SLI
Storage 500GB Samsung 850 PCIe SSD, 4TB
Display(s) 27" Asus 144Hz
Case Enermax Fulmo GT
Audio Device(s) ON BOARD FTW
Power Supply Corsair 1200W
Keyboard Logitech G510
Software Win 10 64x

TheMailMan78

Big Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2007
Messages
22,599 (3.68/day)
Location
'Merica. The Great SOUTH!
System Name TheMailbox 5.0 / The Mailbox 4.5
Processor RYZEN 1700X / Intel i7 2600k @ 4.2GHz
Motherboard Fatal1ty X370 Gaming K4 / Gigabyte Z77X-UP5 TH Intel LGA 1155
Cooling MasterLiquid PRO 280 / Scythe Katana 4
Memory ADATA RGB 16GB DDR4 2666 16-16-16-39 / G.SKILL Sniper Series 16GB DDR3 1866: 9-9-9-24
Video Card(s) MSI 1080 "Duke" with 8Gb of RAM. Boost Clock 1847 MHz / ASUS 780ti
Storage 256Gb M4 SSD / 128Gb Agelity 4 SSD , 500Gb WD (7200)
Display(s) LG 29" Class 21:9 UltraWide® IPS LED Monitor 2560 x 1080 / Dell 27"
Case Cooler Master MASTERBOX 5t / Cooler Master 922 HAF
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec / SupremeFX X-Fi with Bose Companion 2 speakers.
Power Supply Seasonic FOCUS Plus Series SSR-750PX 750W Platinum / SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold
Mouse SteelSeries Sensei (RAW) / Logitech G5
Keyboard Razer BlackWidow / Logitech (Unknown)
Software Windows 10 Pro (64-bit)
Benchmark Scores Benching is for bitches.
It is -200 to +86F over there, read the wiki homeboy
86F ambient temp for Plutonium is high. If it was -200 consistently ok. But its not. The amount of Plutonium in that thing must be the size of a green pea. :laugh:

Maybe its partly depleted?
 
Joined
Jun 25, 2012
Messages
1,027 (0.24/day)
Location
Patna, Bihar, India, Asia, Earth, Terron System, M
System Name Oldtimer(Always Crunching)
Processor Intel P4 631 @ 3.2 GHz [Stock 3.0 GHz]
Motherboard Intel D945GCPE
Memory 512 MB x2 DDR2 (533MHZ and 366 MHZ)
Storage 160GB Sata1 7200rpm
Display(s) ViewSonic VA703m
Power Supply Normal 450W PSU
Software Windows 7 Ultimate 32bit
I know it is immposible to get color pic of Mars from mars but B/W is not cool and i cannot see anything clear.
 
Joined
Apr 21, 2010
Messages
5,731 (1.13/day)
Location
West Midlands. UK.
System Name Ryzen Reynolds
Processor Ryzen 1600 - 4.0Ghz 1.415v - SMT disabled
Motherboard mATX Asrock AB350m AM4
Cooling Raijintek Leto Pro
Memory Vulcan T-Force 16GB DDR4 3000 16.18.18 @3200Mhz 14.17.17
Video Card(s) Sapphire Nitro+ 4GB RX 580 - 1450/2000 BIOS mod 8-)
Storage Seagate B'cuda 1TB/Sandisk 128GB SSD
Display(s) Acer ED242QR 75hz Freesync
Case Corsair Carbide Series SPEC-01
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply Corsair VS 550w
Mouse Zalman ZM-M401R
Keyboard Razor Lycosa
Software Windows 10 x64
Benchmark Scores https://www.3dmark.com/spy/6220813

FordGT90Concept

"I go fast!1!11!1!"
Joined
Oct 13, 2008
Messages
26,259 (4.65/day)
Location
IA, USA
System Name BY-2021
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5800X (65w eco profile)
Motherboard MSI B550 Gaming Plus
Cooling Scythe Mugen (rev 5)
Memory 2 x Kingston HyperX DDR4-3200 32 GiB
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT
Storage Samsung 980 Pro, Seagate Exos X20 TB 7200 RPM
Display(s) Nixeus NX-EDG274K (3840x2160@144 DP) + Samsung SyncMaster 906BW (1440x900@60 HDMI-DVI)
Case Coolermaster HAF 932 w/ USB 3.0 5.25" bay + USB 3.2 (A+C) 3.5" bay
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1150, Micca OriGen+
Power Supply Enermax Platimax 850w
Mouse Nixeus REVEL-X
Keyboard Tesoro Excalibur
Software Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Benchmark Scores Faster than the tortoise; slower than the hare.
86F ambient temp for Plutonium is high. If it was -200 consistently ok. But its not. The amount of Plutonium in that thing must be the size of a green pea. :laugh:

Maybe its partly depleted?
It has 32 pellets about the size of a marshmellow each. It operates on the heat produces by radioactive decay, not by a nuclear chain reaction like nuclear power plants do.


I know it is immposible to get color pic of Mars from mars but B/W is not cool and i cannot see anything clear.
It has color cameras but it will take a long time for the photos to be sent.
 

TheMailMan78

Big Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2007
Messages
22,599 (3.68/day)
Location
'Merica. The Great SOUTH!
System Name TheMailbox 5.0 / The Mailbox 4.5
Processor RYZEN 1700X / Intel i7 2600k @ 4.2GHz
Motherboard Fatal1ty X370 Gaming K4 / Gigabyte Z77X-UP5 TH Intel LGA 1155
Cooling MasterLiquid PRO 280 / Scythe Katana 4
Memory ADATA RGB 16GB DDR4 2666 16-16-16-39 / G.SKILL Sniper Series 16GB DDR3 1866: 9-9-9-24
Video Card(s) MSI 1080 "Duke" with 8Gb of RAM. Boost Clock 1847 MHz / ASUS 780ti
Storage 256Gb M4 SSD / 128Gb Agelity 4 SSD , 500Gb WD (7200)
Display(s) LG 29" Class 21:9 UltraWide® IPS LED Monitor 2560 x 1080 / Dell 27"
Case Cooler Master MASTERBOX 5t / Cooler Master 922 HAF
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec / SupremeFX X-Fi with Bose Companion 2 speakers.
Power Supply Seasonic FOCUS Plus Series SSR-750PX 750W Platinum / SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold
Mouse SteelSeries Sensei (RAW) / Logitech G5
Keyboard Razer BlackWidow / Logitech (Unknown)
Software Windows 10 Pro (64-bit)
Benchmark Scores Benching is for bitches.
It has 32 pellets about the size of a marshmellow each. It operates on the heat produces by radioactive decay, not by a nuclear chain reaction like nuclear power plants do.



It has color cameras but it will take a long time for the photos to be sent.

lol yeah I know. But "hot" plutonium produces a lot of heat. These things have to be slightly deleted.
 
Joined
Jun 25, 2012
Messages
1,027 (0.24/day)
Location
Patna, Bihar, India, Asia, Earth, Terron System, M
System Name Oldtimer(Always Crunching)
Processor Intel P4 631 @ 3.2 GHz [Stock 3.0 GHz]
Motherboard Intel D945GCPE
Memory 512 MB x2 DDR2 (533MHZ and 366 MHZ)
Storage 160GB Sata1 7200rpm
Display(s) ViewSonic VA703m
Power Supply Normal 450W PSU
Software Windows 7 Ultimate 32bit
lol yeah I know. But "hot" plutonium produces a lot of heat. These things have to be slightly deleted.

This thing is going to burn out MARS.:twitch:
 

FordGT90Concept

"I go fast!1!11!1!"
Joined
Oct 13, 2008
Messages
26,259 (4.65/day)
Location
IA, USA
System Name BY-2021
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5800X (65w eco profile)
Motherboard MSI B550 Gaming Plus
Cooling Scythe Mugen (rev 5)
Memory 2 x Kingston HyperX DDR4-3200 32 GiB
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT
Storage Samsung 980 Pro, Seagate Exos X20 TB 7200 RPM
Display(s) Nixeus NX-EDG274K (3840x2160@144 DP) + Samsung SyncMaster 906BW (1440x900@60 HDMI-DVI)
Case Coolermaster HAF 932 w/ USB 3.0 5.25" bay + USB 3.2 (A+C) 3.5" bay
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1150, Micca OriGen+
Power Supply Enermax Platimax 850w
Mouse Nixeus REVEL-X
Keyboard Tesoro Excalibur
Software Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Benchmark Scores Faster than the tortoise; slower than the hare.
lol yeah I know. But "hot" plutonium produces a lot of heat. These things have to be slightly deleted.
It likely has a cooling loop which redirects the heat to heatsinks on the rover if it is getting too hot. Even if it doesn't, they've accounted for it in the design of the rover (likely allowing it to hit peak temperature and sustain it).
 

TheMailMan78

Big Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2007
Messages
22,599 (3.68/day)
Location
'Merica. The Great SOUTH!
System Name TheMailbox 5.0 / The Mailbox 4.5
Processor RYZEN 1700X / Intel i7 2600k @ 4.2GHz
Motherboard Fatal1ty X370 Gaming K4 / Gigabyte Z77X-UP5 TH Intel LGA 1155
Cooling MasterLiquid PRO 280 / Scythe Katana 4
Memory ADATA RGB 16GB DDR4 2666 16-16-16-39 / G.SKILL Sniper Series 16GB DDR3 1866: 9-9-9-24
Video Card(s) MSI 1080 "Duke" with 8Gb of RAM. Boost Clock 1847 MHz / ASUS 780ti
Storage 256Gb M4 SSD / 128Gb Agelity 4 SSD , 500Gb WD (7200)
Display(s) LG 29" Class 21:9 UltraWide® IPS LED Monitor 2560 x 1080 / Dell 27"
Case Cooler Master MASTERBOX 5t / Cooler Master 922 HAF
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec / SupremeFX X-Fi with Bose Companion 2 speakers.
Power Supply Seasonic FOCUS Plus Series SSR-750PX 750W Platinum / SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold
Mouse SteelSeries Sensei (RAW) / Logitech G5
Keyboard Razer BlackWidow / Logitech (Unknown)
Software Windows 10 Pro (64-bit)
Benchmark Scores Benching is for bitches.
This thing is going to burn out MARS.:twitch:

Yes. Plutonium marshmallow's are going to burn out Mars.

It likely has a cooling loop which redirects the heat to heatsinks on the rover if it is getting too hot.

I would love to see that thing up close. Its days like this I wish I would have never dropped out of Aeronautical Engineering. By now I might have been involved in this thing. So cool.
 

W1zzard

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
May 14, 2004
Messages
26,956 (3.71/day)
Processor Ryzen 7 5700X
Memory 48 GB
Video Card(s) RTX 4080
Storage 2x HDD RAID 1, 3x M.2 NVMe
Display(s) 30" 2560x1600 + 19" 1280x1024
Software Windows 10 64-bit
lol yeah I know. But "hot" plutonium produces a lot of heat. These things have to be slightly deleted.

what are you talking about? hot is an arbitrary state of temperature, not a measure of energy or power. is your argument "a red hot piece of metal produces a lot of heat" ?

do you mean "depleted" ? that's not the case. depleted means that the isotopes are stable or have extremely long lifetimes. in that case there would not be much heat for power generation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioisotope_Thermoelectric_Generator
good read
 
Last edited:

FordGT90Concept

"I go fast!1!11!1!"
Joined
Oct 13, 2008
Messages
26,259 (4.65/day)
Location
IA, USA
System Name BY-2021
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5800X (65w eco profile)
Motherboard MSI B550 Gaming Plus
Cooling Scythe Mugen (rev 5)
Memory 2 x Kingston HyperX DDR4-3200 32 GiB
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT
Storage Samsung 980 Pro, Seagate Exos X20 TB 7200 RPM
Display(s) Nixeus NX-EDG274K (3840x2160@144 DP) + Samsung SyncMaster 906BW (1440x900@60 HDMI-DVI)
Case Coolermaster HAF 932 w/ USB 3.0 5.25" bay + USB 3.2 (A+C) 3.5" bay
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1150, Micca OriGen+
Power Supply Enermax Platimax 850w
Mouse Nixeus REVEL-X
Keyboard Tesoro Excalibur
Software Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Benchmark Scores Faster than the tortoise; slower than the hare.
Pu-238 can generate temps exceeding 1000C (1832F) on the surface depending on configuration. That's "hot" by pretty much any definition. XD
 

TheMailMan78

Big Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2007
Messages
22,599 (3.68/day)
Location
'Merica. The Great SOUTH!
System Name TheMailbox 5.0 / The Mailbox 4.5
Processor RYZEN 1700X / Intel i7 2600k @ 4.2GHz
Motherboard Fatal1ty X370 Gaming K4 / Gigabyte Z77X-UP5 TH Intel LGA 1155
Cooling MasterLiquid PRO 280 / Scythe Katana 4
Memory ADATA RGB 16GB DDR4 2666 16-16-16-39 / G.SKILL Sniper Series 16GB DDR3 1866: 9-9-9-24
Video Card(s) MSI 1080 "Duke" with 8Gb of RAM. Boost Clock 1847 MHz / ASUS 780ti
Storage 256Gb M4 SSD / 128Gb Agelity 4 SSD , 500Gb WD (7200)
Display(s) LG 29" Class 21:9 UltraWide® IPS LED Monitor 2560 x 1080 / Dell 27"
Case Cooler Master MASTERBOX 5t / Cooler Master 922 HAF
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec / SupremeFX X-Fi with Bose Companion 2 speakers.
Power Supply Seasonic FOCUS Plus Series SSR-750PX 750W Platinum / SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold
Mouse SteelSeries Sensei (RAW) / Logitech G5
Keyboard Razer BlackWidow / Logitech (Unknown)
Software Windows 10 Pro (64-bit)
Benchmark Scores Benching is for bitches.
Pu-238 can generate temps exceeding 1000C (1832F) on the surface depending on configuration. That's "hot" by pretty much any definition. XD

This is what I mean.

Not hot in radioactivity. I mean hotter then a frying pan. :laugh: So yeah they would have to be depleted some or passive cooling wouldn't work in 85F without cooling. You said there is no cooling loop or working parts so whatever plutonium they have in there has to be depleted. That and all they are getting is 125 W. Its depleted or they put the most inefficient generator in space on it.

Thats all I'm saying.

Pu2o gets hot as hell. In space its no big deal. In 85F it can become and issue. There HAS to be something cooling it.
 
Last edited:

W1zzard

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
May 14, 2004
Messages
26,956 (3.71/day)
Processor Ryzen 7 5700X
Memory 48 GB
Video Card(s) RTX 4080
Storage 2x HDD RAID 1, 3x M.2 NVMe
Display(s) 30" 2560x1600 + 19" 1280x1024
Software Windows 10 64-bit
i meant cooling loop in the context of a nuclear reactor (water, pumps, cooling towers)

the heat output on the mars probe is 2000 W, from 4.8 kilograms of Pu-238. the thermocouples are super-inefficient, they generate around 100 W. some secondary heat is used to keep other subsystems warm during night/winter/space.


the assembly has white fins on the outside to dissipate extra heat

Pu2o gets hot as hell
any heat source that can not remove enough heat will get infinitely hot
Just like every 2000W heater, as long as you have 2000 W of cooling, its temperature will not increase. if you remove more than 2000W it will cool down, if you remove less it will heat up.

actually i'm not sure if it's easier to cool in space or on mars. in space you can only radiate it away. on mars you have cooling effects from the (thin) atmosphere, but you lose some radiative cooling potential because you have the ground at higher temperature than space
 
Last edited:
Joined
May 21, 2009
Messages
4,966 (0.92/day)
System Name i7-PC / HTPC / iMac
Processor i7 3820 / Phenom II 940
Motherboard GIGABYTE G1.ASSASSIN2 / M3A79-T Deluxe
Cooling Corsair Hydro H100i / Scythe II (HS only)
Memory G.SKILL Trident X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600mhz / 4GB DDR2 1066 (@800) Corsair Dominator
Video Card(s) GB Radeon HD 7950s 3GB / GB Radeon HD 7950s 3GB
Storage 2x 80GB Intel X-25, 2x600gb SATA, 1x1tb 5400RPM storage /1x600GB, 3x500GB,1x160,1x120 SATA
Display(s) 1x 27" Yamakasi / Vizio 42" HDTV
Case Lian Li Lancool PC-K58 / Antec 900
Audio Device(s) HT Omega Striker 7.1 / Onboard and HDMI from ATi Card
Power Supply PC Power & Cooling 750W / 610W
Software Ubuntu / Windows 8.1 Pro / OS X / PHPStorm / Gaming
Why would they give it enough juice for 14 years but only fund it for two?

it's all bureaucracy, it's easier to get money earmarked for a project with a short specific lifespan and defined goals. BUT, IF, within that project they can find ways to make it more effective, last longer, and generally be cooler - they take it. however the initial mission stays the same, because that's what was agreed upon and what they are paid for.

look at it like this, after 2 years mission accomplished. anything we learn after that is just gravy :)
 

Norton

Moderator - Returning from the Darkness
Staff member
Joined
Dec 21, 2011
Messages
14,108 (3.15/day)
Location
Northeast USA
System Name Main PC- Gamer- Main Cruncher/Folder and too many crunching/folding rigs
Processor Ryzen 5900X- Ryzen 5950X- Ryzen 3950X and etc...
Motherboard Asrock X570 Extreme4- MSI X570S Tomahawk MAX WiFi- MSI B450M Bazooka Max and etc...
Cooling Noctua NH-U14S (dual fan)- EK 360 AIO with push/pull fans- Corsair H115i RGB Pro XT and etc...
Memory 2x16GB GSkill FlareX 3200/c14- 4x8GB Corsair Vengeance 3600/c16- 2x16GB Team 3600/c18 and etc..
Video Card(s) MSI Gaming RX 6800- Asus RTX 3070 TUF OC- MSI Ventus GTX 1660Ti and etc...
Storage Main PC (1TB WD SN850- 2TB PNY CS 3040- 2TB Seagate Firecuda) and etc...
Display(s) Main PC (2x24" Dell UltraSharp U2414H)
Case Phanteks P600s- Seasonic Q704- Fractal Meshify C and etc...
Audio Device(s) Logitech Z625 THX 2.1 speakers
Power Supply EVGA 750 G3- SeaSonic DGC 750- EVGA P2 850 and etc...
Mouse G300s
Keyboard Corsair K65
VR HMD N/A
Software Windows 10 Pro or Ubuntu
Benchmark Scores Why sit on the Bench when you can get in the game and Crunch!!!
RTG info

what are you talking about? hot is an arbitrary state of temperature, not a measure of energy or power. is your argument "a red hot piece of metal produces a lot of heat" ?

do you mean "depleted" ? that's not the case. depleted means that the isotopes are stable or have extremely long lifetimes. in that case there would not be much heat for power generation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioisotope_Thermoelectric_Generator
good read

Excellent read :toast:

IIRC the Plutonium fuel source used for the RTG on this rover was the backup/spare unit for the Cassini probe.... just can't remember where I read it atm....*See Edit*

*EDIT- The spare RTG from Cassini was used for the New Horizons probe that's on its way to Pluto..... I knew it went somewhere :eek:
Link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassini-Huygens#Plutonium_power_source
 
Last edited:

TheMailMan78

Big Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2007
Messages
22,599 (3.68/day)
Location
'Merica. The Great SOUTH!
System Name TheMailbox 5.0 / The Mailbox 4.5
Processor RYZEN 1700X / Intel i7 2600k @ 4.2GHz
Motherboard Fatal1ty X370 Gaming K4 / Gigabyte Z77X-UP5 TH Intel LGA 1155
Cooling MasterLiquid PRO 280 / Scythe Katana 4
Memory ADATA RGB 16GB DDR4 2666 16-16-16-39 / G.SKILL Sniper Series 16GB DDR3 1866: 9-9-9-24
Video Card(s) MSI 1080 "Duke" with 8Gb of RAM. Boost Clock 1847 MHz / ASUS 780ti
Storage 256Gb M4 SSD / 128Gb Agelity 4 SSD , 500Gb WD (7200)
Display(s) LG 29" Class 21:9 UltraWide® IPS LED Monitor 2560 x 1080 / Dell 27"
Case Cooler Master MASTERBOX 5t / Cooler Master 922 HAF
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1220 Audio Codec / SupremeFX X-Fi with Bose Companion 2 speakers.
Power Supply Seasonic FOCUS Plus Series SSR-750PX 750W Platinum / SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold
Mouse SteelSeries Sensei (RAW) / Logitech G5
Keyboard Razer BlackWidow / Logitech (Unknown)
Software Windows 10 Pro (64-bit)
Benchmark Scores Benching is for bitches.
i meant cooling loop in the context of a nuclear reactor (water, pumps, cooling towers)

the heat output on the mars probe is 2000 W, from 4.8 kilograms of Pu-238. the thermocouples are super-inefficient, they generate around 100 W. some secondary heat is used to keep other subsystems warm during night/winter/space.

http://img.techpowerup.org/120807/Capture1654.jpg
the assembly has white fins on the outside to dissipate extra heat


any heat source that can not remove enough heat will get infinitely hot
Just like every 2000W heater, as long as you have 2000 W of cooling, its temperature will not increase. if you remove more than 2000W it will cool down, if you remove less it will heat up.

actually i'm not sure if it's easier to cool in space or on mars. in space you can only radiate it away. on mars you have cooling effects from the (thin) atmosphere, but you lose some radiative cooling potential because you have the ground at higher temperature than space

I agree cooling in space has its advantages as well as disadvantages. If Mars was sub zero all the time then with the thin atmosphere it would cool better then space AFAIK. Problem is when it goes above 20F is when a "passive" cooling system becomes an issue. This is why we only have a few of these kinda (very similar) generators in Alaska........north Alaska and I believe they have a reserve cooling system for emergency's but don't quote me on that. No matter what its an engineering feat to keep that cool and working on an alien planet. Space is one thing. The temperature is "fixed" for the most part. The variables of a planet is a WHOLE different story. Very cool tech.
 

Norton

Moderator - Returning from the Darkness
Staff member
Joined
Dec 21, 2011
Messages
14,108 (3.15/day)
Location
Northeast USA
System Name Main PC- Gamer- Main Cruncher/Folder and too many crunching/folding rigs
Processor Ryzen 5900X- Ryzen 5950X- Ryzen 3950X and etc...
Motherboard Asrock X570 Extreme4- MSI X570S Tomahawk MAX WiFi- MSI B450M Bazooka Max and etc...
Cooling Noctua NH-U14S (dual fan)- EK 360 AIO with push/pull fans- Corsair H115i RGB Pro XT and etc...
Memory 2x16GB GSkill FlareX 3200/c14- 4x8GB Corsair Vengeance 3600/c16- 2x16GB Team 3600/c18 and etc..
Video Card(s) MSI Gaming RX 6800- Asus RTX 3070 TUF OC- MSI Ventus GTX 1660Ti and etc...
Storage Main PC (1TB WD SN850- 2TB PNY CS 3040- 2TB Seagate Firecuda) and etc...
Display(s) Main PC (2x24" Dell UltraSharp U2414H)
Case Phanteks P600s- Seasonic Q704- Fractal Meshify C and etc...
Audio Device(s) Logitech Z625 THX 2.1 speakers
Power Supply EVGA 750 G3- SeaSonic DGC 750- EVGA P2 850 and etc...
Mouse G300s
Keyboard Corsair K65
VR HMD N/A
Software Windows 10 Pro or Ubuntu
Benchmark Scores Why sit on the Bench when you can get in the game and Crunch!!!
I agree cooling in space has its advantages as well as disadvantages. If Mars was sub zero all the time then with the thin atmosphere it would cool better then space AFAIK. Problem is when it goes above 20F is when a "passive" cooling system becomes an issue. This is why we only have a few of these kinda (very similar) generators in Alaska........north Alaska and I believe they have a reserve cooling system for emergency's but don't quote me on that. No matter what its an engineering feat to keep that cool and working on an alien planet. Space is one thing. The temperature is "fixed" for the most part. The variables of a planet is a WHOLE different story. Very cool tech.

The rovers RTG was active in our atmosphere and didn't overheat. It did run hot enough that it needed to have a large safety cage around it.

See pic/caption:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:MMRTG_for_the_MSL.jpg

On Mars it's not an issue... no reason to protect it from people and the cooling system would run better on Mars than Earth.

It will be fine as long as no Martians burn their tentacles on it- then there will be an inter-planetary lawsuit for Judge Judy to preside over :D
 
Top