What if VW attempted the Mars landing???

[GrannyJen]

Meanwhile,

Whilst stuck in the wrong crater surrounded by parachute with roof rot and the local VW Dealer, Mars Central, not answering the phone, a Mars-co-polo comes around the corner and two Martians hop. out asking if anyone can help them get the bed flat...

 

[clarinetbcn]

VW promoted its rockets as being the cleanest and most eco friendly ever made. It was later discovered that VW had made cheap rocket fuel from bootleg nuclear waste from Chernobyl which rained toxic radiation on the Earth's upper atmosphere. They have said they are sorry, but really all is ok because from next year all new rockets will be powered by telepathy.

 

[Perfectos]

Here’s one they tried several years ago, melted on re entry !

 

[Velma's Dad]

After the first day of roaming the crater surface, Mission Control spends half an hour arguing about which way round on the pitch the VW-rover should be parked for the Martian night and then discovers that someone left the levelling ramps back in the garage 213 million km away.

 

[flying banana]

That was my hope

I let the kids stay up late last week to watch the landing live. We watched nearly 2 hours of coverage. It was utter genius. The jetpack photographs the terrain, whilst descending, so it can determine where to land! How do you do that??? The whole landing was fully autonomous. So exciting to watch.

And as for the Sky Crane!!! To suggest it is one thing, to work out how to do it, just wow. Hats off to NASA.

thats the 2nd time then sky crane has been used. pure engineering and scientific genius. now THATS how to follow the science !!! maybe they called it skycrane 1.1 ?
stunning camera work too by nasa there

 

[WelshGas]

At least the Warranty would be just with 1 manufacturer.

 

[Goss]

Depends on which country the VW was sold from, if UK it would have a far more expensive service schedule compared to the rest of Europe!

 

[WelshGas]

Depends on which country the VW was sold from, if UK it would have a far more expensive service schedule compared to the rest of Europe!

But longer warranty period.

 

[ReinholdMessner]

All valid concerns but nothing Beth couldn’t resolve over the Mission Control Chat.

 

[subthree]

Mission control to VW; "The pictures coming back from Mars aren't very clear at night time".

VW to mission control: "You didn't say you wanted the LED headlights on the rover, they were a $1 billion optional extra".

 

[andyinluton]

The astronauts space suits would be made by Brandrup, fit perfectly but cost more than the rocket, & would get delivered a month or two after the launch.

 

[Perfectos]

At least the Warranty would be just with 1 manufacturer.

That some trip to the dealer though, only to be told the part is on back order!

 

[clarinetbcn]

If launched from the UK, the cam belt which controls the rocket nozzles has to be changed every 4 months, so must be replaced in flight using an expensive remote process. However, VW has used the same technology for missions originating in Germany, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Austria and Spain with a recommended service life of 214 million km and no time limit.

Edit: hat tip to @Goss

 

[Corradobrit]

THe parachute would fall apart with roof rot.

No way. Parachute was made in the UK, not Germany.

 

[Corradobrit]

That was my hope

I let the kids stay up late last week to watch the landing live. We watched nearly 2 hours of coverage. It was utter genius. The jetpack photographs the terrain, whilst descending, so it can determine where to land! How do you do that??? The whole landing was fully autonomous. So exciting to watch.

Previous missions had mapped the entire Mars surface. That data was used by the lander to navigate autonomously to place it in the perfect location whilst avoiding obstacles, boulders etc. Google maps was not involved.
The landing is just the beginning. There's a system to retrieve mars rocks, get them into orbit so that a relay module can dock and get them back to Earth. Truly amazing stuff and kudos to all involved.