WaterFeeler mission launch

As mentioned in the previous post, i was working on a new probe. And it is finished. If you are reading this, i most likely already livestreamed the "landing" on my YouTube Channel (which for me feels kinda strange, since while writing this, i'm setting up that future event that is already in the past for your)..

The new mission is called WaterFeeler. It's solar powered and has basically the same goal goal as every single lander NASA has sent to Mars: "Find the Water".

I will explain the technology in future posts in detail, or you can also watch the livestream, which will be archived on YouTube.

Mission objectives

Required

These are the objectives that must the fulfilled. If anyone of these don't work, it's a mission failure.

• Communicate with Mission Control. (This failed on some previous missions. D'oh!)
• Downlink status of internal temperature, humidity and the battery voltage.
• Detect precipitation, e.g. rain
• Measure soil resistance
• Prove solar charging and evaluate power system design
• Function for a week

Desired

These are the nice-to-have objectives. If they don't work or can't be implemented in time, it's sad but not critical. But they must not interfer with the fullfilment of the "required" objectives.

• Detect decreased soil resistance after rain
• Measure soil capacity
• Prove the ability to act as a radio relais for future missions
• Function for more than a month

Optional

These optional objectives are neither urgent nor terribly important. But they could accelerate the Garden Space Program by providing additional data points and early test results.

• Downlink stored test images
• Try to detect a 50 Hertz sinewave in the soil from the power grid
• Save a soil capacity time series to EEPROM and restore it later to RAM
• Serve as radio relais for future missions
• Function for more than a year

Images