Beagle 2 found!

[barrydidit]

Coal then. They should have sent Fred Dibnah with a traction engine - proper British exploration effort.

[BolshieBastard]

interesting point about the panels not deploying, similar to the problems with the comet probe getting caught in the shade. Most probes have a nuclear power pack which seems to be a better bet, in terms of reliability

They only tend to use the nuclear option for deep space missions where the sunlight isnt strong enough although Curiosity and other bigger probes on Mars are effectively nuclear powered.

They use Plutonium 238 which has a half life of about 90 years and doesnt radiate as deadly a radiation as 239. So, any probes which may come into contact with alien life will not cause an inter galactic war.

But bear in mind this mission was launched in 2002 / 3 as a last minute addition and on a very tight budget.

The solar panels would have provided sufficient power for Beagle if they'd all deployed. The reason why they didnt all deploy can only be speculated though.

[GlenW]

The reason why they didnt all deploy can only be speculated though.

The production of the hinges had been outsourced to Mumbai.