On 4 Jan 2004 10:00:23 -0800, (Moorehead
Johnson) wrote:

Could Spirit or Opportunity
actually traverse the martian landscape towards Beagle's expected
landing site and look around?

Although Mars is much smaller than Earth, Mars actually has as much
surface area as Earth has dry land area.

The rovers, although bigger and more powerful than little Sojourner,
are still only going to be able to cover only a relatively small area.
IIRC, the new rovers can go over 100 yards per day, and the mission is
supposed to last 3 months.


Paul Below
Battle Point Astronomical Association
Bainbridge Island, WA, USA
http://bainbridgeisland.org/ritchieobs/