Frequently asked
questions:
Question: How did the Dawn Mission get it's name?
Answer: The mission was not named after a person, but rather it was so named to present a simple image of the purpose of the mission: to provide information on the dawn of the solar system.
More frequently asked questions about the Dawn mission are grouped below by category. Please select a question to find out the answer. (Tip: To temporarily allow a site to display pop-ups, click the Information Bar when it notifies you that a pop-up has been blocked. Then, click Temporarily Allow Pop-ups.)
CIENCE
Question S1: How well does Ceres fit "Bode's Law"?
Question S2: If an astronaut could stand on Ceres, what percentage of Earth's gravity would she/he experience?
Question S3: If an astronaut can run 0.1 mile in one minute in his space suit, what is the smallest asteroid on which the astronaut can land without having to be concerned about floating off when he or she runs? About 500 meter radius? About 2 km radius? About 8 km radius [the average size of the asteroid Eros orbited on the NEAR mission]?
Question S4: Does Ceres have a firm surface upon which a spacecraft might land? How do you know that?
Question S5: Why were these two asteroids in particular chosen as targets?
MISSION
Question M1: What is the reason for going to Vesta before Ceres?
Question M2: Will there be opportunities to visit other asteroids, either en route to Ceres or as part of an extended mission?
Question M3: Why does it take so long to get to Vesta and then from Vesta
to Ceres? The travel time scheduled appears to be significantly
longer than would be required by a Hohmann transfer orbit.
ION PROPULSION
Question IP1: In the broadest sense, how does ion propulsion work?
Question IP2: Why did the engineers choose Xenon to propel Dawn's ion engines?
Question IP 3: What makes ion propulsion advantageous for the Dawn mission?
+ See additional NASA FAQs about Ion Propulsion
Answers provided by Chris Russell -Dawn Principal Investigator, Lucy McFadden-E/PO
Director, Joe Wise-E/PO Manager, and Marc Rayman-Dawn Project System Engineer. |
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