ignac@electro.UUCP (Ignac Kolenko) (08/30/89)
just wondering: i remember back in the early 60's some of the initial
attempts at putting something (or should i say, crashing something) on the
moon failed, and the probes ended up in solar orbit. has anyone launched
a probe that purposely ended up in solar orbit to study the sun?? would
there be any benefit to doing so rather than keeping the probe in orbit
around the earth (ie: solar max mission)??
by the way, what's the oldest probe/satellite that we still have contact
with?? anything from the 60's still communicating??
and now we return you to reality ...
--
=====Ignac A. Kolenko (The Ig) watmath!watcgl!electro!ignac=====
co-author of QuickST, and the entire line of Quick Shareware!!!!
"I don't care if I don't win, 'cause I don't care if I fail"
from 'Youth Of Today' by SUBURBAN DISTORTION henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer) (08/30/89)
In article <1052@electro.UUCP> ignac@electro.UUCP (Ignac Kolenko) writes: >... has anyone launched >a probe that purposely ended up in solar orbit to study the sun?? ... Yes. The "middle" Pioneers, 5 (I think) through 9, were deliberately modest missions launched into solar orbit. Among other things, their data provided some limited degree of solar-storm forecasting for the Apollo missions. >...any benefit to doing so rather than keeping the probe in orbit >around the earth (ie: solar max mission)?? Yes. Near-Earth satellites see what the Sun is doing from one angle only, and sense the solar wind etc. at one point in the Sun's huge atmosphere. There is a lot to be said for studying it from several positions at once. >by the way, what's the oldest probe/satellite that we still have contact >with?? anything from the 60's still communicating?? Yes. If I recall correctly, Pioneer 6 is still active, and it was launched in 1965. In fact, several of that series are still active. -- V7 /bin/mail source: 554 lines.| Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology 1989 X.400 specs: 2200+ pages. | uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry henry@zoo.toronto.edu