Phobos-Grunt Mars probe remains silent in Earth orbit

[Ville]

An interesting piece at the LINK (http://www.spaceflightnow.com/news/n1111/11phobosgrunt/).

The first excerpt below explains why establishing communications with Phobos is difficult.


Phobos-Grunt's low-gain antenna may be blocked by fuel tanks on the craft's rocket pack. The tanks were supposed to be jettisoned after one of the engine firings.

[…]

It's also unclear whether Phobos-Grunt is alive and under its own control. Observations from experienced satellite trackers indicate the spacecraft has a steady brightness, meaning it could be stable and not tumbling.
… U.S. military tracking data showed Phobos-Grunt in a slightly higher orbit, which could be the result of an intentional maneuver. It's also possible the orbit change could be caused by venting propellant.

A lot of good science is at stake here.

[Logan]

Might yet hope it comes back online or that it returns to an uninhabited spot. Seem likely to be a concern for a few more weeks. Might have otherwise returned from another moon something interesting.

[Ville]

Might yet hope it comes back online or that it returns to an uninhabited spot. Seem likely to be a concern for a few more weeks. Might have otherwise returned from another moon something interesting.

From what I know, the riskiest phase - landing on Phobos including all soil-collection steps – was tested in simulated models most vigorously. The initial steps of flight control were probably considered as rather trivial.

Here are a couple of images that show the size of this baby and Zenit rocket on the launch pad.

http://www.russianspaceweb.com/images/spacecraft/planetary/mars/phobos_grunt/checks/fg_fairing_31_40_1.jpg

http://www.russianspaceweb.com/images/spacecraft/planetary/mars/phobos_grunt/assembly/fairing_install_1.jpg

http://www.russianspaceweb.com/images/spacecraft/planetary/mars/phobos_grunt/launch/erecting_1.jpg

[Ville]

Well, the window of opportunity to go to Mars’ Phobos was closed today. Next chance for a round trip will be 2014.

But there is some good news, for a change.

Apparently, small control thrusters continue keeping the spacecraft in orbit. Not only that - the probe actually increased its perigee. It is a mystery, since there was no official statement on who controls these thrusters - I’ve seen pieces that speculate the probe itself might have been designed to adjust its orbit.

This means engineers bought themselves more time to find a solution. Hopefully, they have MacGyvers there who can either find a way to keep Phobos-Grunt in earth orbit until 2014 or re-program the onboard controller for an alternative mission.