stock-prince-WK OP t1_jad55nj wrote on February 28, 2023 at 4:10 PM

Reply to comment by solidcordon in Do we have an actual close up photo of Olympus Mons ? by stock-prince-WK

Do you think a robot can even get there if it wanted to ?

solidcordon t1_jad63ob wrote on February 28, 2023 at 4:16 PM

The rovers on mars are quite far from olympus mons. Pretty sure it would take a really long time to get there, like years or decades.

It's technically possible to send a new rover to climb that mountain but the scientific justification for that expenditure is lacking.

Landing on an inclined surface is more difficult / dangerous than a nice flat level area, so the risk may also be a problem.

Mars has killed a few probes. Bear in mind that if anything goes wrong with the multimillion dollar rover at any stage it can lead to politicians cutting funding for future exploration.

solidcordon t1_jadlbax wrote on February 28, 2023 at 5:53 PM

You sparked my curiosity.

This is what I found.

https://www.reddit.com/r/space/comments/1r22wr/will_the_mars_rover_go_anywhere_near_olympus_mons/

stock-prince-WK OP t1_jaeqd6k wrote on February 28, 2023 at 10:15 PM

Thanks for this. So amazing to know what’s out there. Wish I was selected to be apart of that colonial expedition. But unfortunately probably won’t be alive during that time.

Still amazing.