FNRttC Friday Night Ride to the Coast - Brighton 3rd August

[TimO]

I've put the GPS track up on GPSies. It's not dramatically different from plenty of previous rides, but there were a couple of small variations.

 

[User10571]

Awesome. As is usual, Tim.
Very much flavours of Rapha/Rouler (or whatever they're calling themselves, these days)
Doesn't matter.
Top photos.

 

[dellzeqq]

Just to complete their education, or start it for anyone who missed my illuminating (or more likely confusing) explanation on the train, here's a link to a more explanatory video.

Contrary to what that video implies, should it all go horribly wrong, and the remains of Curiosity ends up decorating a large area of the Martian surface, they will have some information about what happened. Mars Express (an ESA spacecraft currently in orbit around Mars) will be monitoring the signal from Curiosity in a so called "Open Loop" recording (as probably will some Earth based ground stations, albeit with a substantially greater Noise to Signal level), which will allow them to see both the Doppler level shifts as the various stages of entry deacceleration occur, but also the limited "tones" that will be transmitted to show what the spacecraft thinks is happening. They can't send back a detailed telemetry, because of the impossibility of accurately pointing a high-gain antenna from a slightly unpredictably moving spacecraft, but they will send a very much lower data rate signal indicating the gross features of the landing. Of course, when it successfully lands, they'll be able to uplink much more detailed telemetry about the landing, including things like pictures from the descent imager, which will take five HD images a second for around the last three minutes of the descent (basically once the heat shield is released, and no longer in the way of the camera).

Exciting stuff, all happening in just under eighteen hours, around 6am tomorrow morning.

it's on the ground and tweeting!

 

[Aperitif]

it's on the ground and tweeting!

A Mars a day helps you work, rest and play.

 

[theclaud]

Lovely ride report DZ . Lovely snaps, Tim. ["Snaps?? I don't take snaps! I paint with light..."] Especially love the one of the sun through the clouds at the bottom of Ditchling. And Des is back!

 

[theclaud]

Is that a red stripe on Ian's cap????

 

[Aperitif]

I can only agree with your choice of snap, Claudine. You need to produce a book now, Tim...your time has come!
Yes, Ian is only a step away from his Old Trafford season ticket. Otherwise, it is an early acknowledgement to Independence Day.

 

[dellzeqq]

(from Tim's photostream)
the trees were planted to celebrate Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in 1897. Apparently the 3060 saplings cost a bit over twelve quid

 

[srw]

There was a particularly lovely shaft of sunlight about two-thirds of the way up Ditchling - the sun was at the perfect angle to illuminate the inside of the tunnel of leaves, making a cracking contrast with the previous bend"s gloom.

I'm disappointed the official photographer didn't stop the tandem to capture the moment for posterity.

 

[CharlieB]

(from Tim's photostream)
the trees were planted to celebrate Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in 1897. Apparently the 3060 saplings cost a bit over twelve quid

Thank you, DZ. I noticed that at the time and wondered the significance of the V.

Great pics, as ever, TimH.

Great ride, as ever. Thank you one and all.
An enjoyable maiden SMRbtH with the supersonic Ian, Martin, Rimas, Ross, SD et al.
I thought I'd head for Clapham Junction to try to avoid central London and pick up a train there. Twas not to be, alas. For the record, Overground and SouthWest have also enforced (quite un-necessarily aggressively) a no-bikes policy for the duration, so I did end up riding through a packed Victoria/HydePark/Oxford Street to get to Marylebone, where Chiltern must be the only remaining NR operator accepting bikes.
123 miles for the day.

 

[TimO]

it's on the ground and tweeting!

Indeed, although it's possible the tweets aren't being sent directly from Mars.

Here's one of the first two images which they received before Mars Odyssey went below the horizon, and they lost contact with Curiosity.

It was taken by the front hazcam (which are really meant to aid the rover in avoiding obstacles), and the lens cover is still on, you can see some of the dust on it.

It does show the shadow of Curiosity rather well, and apparently demonstrates that the spacecraft is facing east currently!

 

[martint235]

Thanks for getting the Tower Bridge pic TimH!!

 

[theclaud]

 

[dan13l]

Thanks to Simon and team for another well organised event again and thanks to Ian and fasts for the lead back appreciated.
Cheers Danny.

 

[dellzeqq]

Indeed, although it's possible the tweets aren't being sent directly from Mars.

I knew it!