bathroomheater t1_iu43b00 wrote on October 28, 2022 at 12:24 PM

Reply to comment by gribblefrit in NASA spacecraft records epic ‘marsquakes’ as it prepares to die by marketrent

So if you have the ability to tilt and move why not give it the ability to swing upside down and tap gently against the rover to knock the dust off

enderjaca t1_iu46rys wrote on October 28, 2022 at 12:54 PM

Because it's very light dust that is electrostatically attached to the panels. Tapping wouldn't do much. And as other folks have mentioned, adding more complexity to the rover means a greater chance of failure and adding more weight, which means more cost, and that you have to choose what other scientific instruments you can't include because you have a maximum weight/cost limit.

bathroomheater t1_iu4gwki wrote on October 28, 2022 at 2:11 PM

So I guess sci-fi shows have lied to me all my life and reversing polarity after randomly slapping a keyboard also won’t solve it either

enderjaca t1_iu4l323 wrote on October 28, 2022 at 2:40 PM

Anytime I get mad and slap a keyboard, I solve that problem and boom, I instantly have a different problem. Molotov cocktails work the same way.

DeifiedExile t1_iu47ik9 wrote on October 28, 2022 at 1:00 PM

You can't just knock the dust off. It's electrostatically charged, so it clings to the panels like a magnet. Additionally, those panels are significantly more delicate than what your average earth-based panel.