UPDATE2:
Return of the Jade Rabbit: China’s moon rover back in action
BEIJING — China’s Jade Rabbit lunar rover, feared to have suffered some irreparable technical difficulties, may yet have some spring in its step.
UPDATE: It may have a heartbeat. A website devoted to the amateur monitoring of radio signals from deep space, uhf-satcom.com, reports that a downlink signal from the Yutu rover has been detected. Whether it’s a zombie or not is still unknown.
From wire reports:
China’s lunar rover, Yutu, was has failed to reawaken after 14 days of hibernation.
Yutu, China’s first lunar rover, is dead.
Mission controllers in Beijing were unable to communicate with and restore the rover, also called Jade Rabbit, according to a Chinadaily report released February 12. A problem with the rover was first announced on January 25.
China’s first lunar rover, Yutu, could not be restored to full function on Monday as expected, and netizens mourned it on Weibo, China’s Twitter-like service. [Special coverage]
Yutu experienced mechanical problems on Jan 25 and has been unable to function since then.
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One wonders if the cause will ultimately be traced to something many people experience daily on a worldwide basis: poorly manufactured Chinese components often fail quickly.
Of course, there are many instances of other countries moon and mars landers/rovers failing on deployment, so they are not alone. It is still an accomplishment to just get there.
Just watch the UN plan turning China into the factory of the world: http://green-agenda.com
I really want the Chinese people to succeed but as it looks today their centralized economy has arrived on the brink just as debt loaded as the West and Japan.
They have been building entire ghost cities where nobody lives just to polish up their books to keep foreign capital coming in. Now they are cooking the books on exports claiming more exports than the importing counties receive. China is a big bubble and when it bursts it will wipe out 90% of their companies. http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-02-12/it-begins-another-high-yield-chinese-shadow-banking-trust-defaults#
As for their real estate bubble:
As for their building quality:
This is a totally corrupt nation and fear they will go down the drain in a terrible manner.
See if the link here covers Pioneers 0 – 5 (satisfactorily):
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2014/02/12/its-dead-jim-chinas-lunar-rover-fails-to-reconnect-with-earth/#comment-1566120
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Very likely has those rotten lithium-ion batteries the Chinese sell on eBay. You know, “Ultra-something” or “Something-Fire”. Usually cannibalised from dead laptops.
markx says:
February 12, 2014 at 5:30 pm
Mighty effort by China. the place is full of young, educated, driven people ….. and they are learning quickly.
To those who will snicker, remember once when “Made in Japan” was regarded as an indication of cheap, trashy, fragile, disposable.
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Hear! Hear!
As my 1995 Corolla will attest @ur momisugly 281,000 miles: it still has alternator/starter(except 1 set of Cu starter contacts @ur momisugly $1 each), power steering &water pump, power brakes (except linings), electric fuel pump, air conditioning, computer and all related engine sensors, all hoses except water pump intake and high pressure power steering, all ball joints/bearings, 3 each axle struts, engine (except plugs) &automatic transmission all as original unrefurbished installed equipment. The CV joints needed replacement @ur momisugly about 180,000 and the thermostat &radiator at around 250,000. The only downside might be that like the proverbial carriage the car will start failing all at once. Based on this and other models that I’ve owned and didn’t fare so well with, and then using Consumer Reports as a base reference, that mag has become my family’s automotive buying bible.
If Toyota can make relatively simple but important accessories like alternators and water/fuel pumps this reliable, the other manufacturers can also but choose not to, probably for repeat auto sales and expense of customer returns for repairs.
John F. Hultquist: If you owned a ’20 or even the later ’64 – please stand.
Can I sit down now? Just to check I went and pulled one of my old C64s out of the closet and–sure enough–it says right there, MADE IN USA. I used ’em for years–the best machine for teaching third graders basic computer skills ever produced, IMHO.
China under the CPC is the biggest polluter on Earth today. Maybe they couldn’t keep their “clean rooms” for parts or space craft assembly clean enough. Biggest victims: all breathing Chinese. Food for the Elite comes from special biological farms.
Oh ye of little faith…the talk of Yutu’s death was premature, it has awoken and is transmitting telemetry back to Earth…
http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Yutu_Awakes_999.html
The late 1980’s fear was the economic rise of Japan and its domination of the world economy. It did not happen because Japanese industry was strong in a very limited number of areas i.e. automobiles, consumer products etc. No aircraft industry, minimal medical instrumentation etc. China is much the same today; production capability in a few areas. The USA and EU are self sustaining China and Japan are not and thus will not have the capability to dominate other than locally. The Chinese military is primarily an internal police force incapable of projecting power much beyond its borders. The other regional nations are already establishing alliances to contain China both militarily and geographically. Chinese expansion is west into Siberia which it has been infiltrating for decades as Russia contracts. Interesting Times!
The following is as excerpted from: https://twitter.com/uhf_satcom for educational and study purposes.
… this is with the newly announced downconverter – i need
The series of Tweets below announce the ‘copy’ (or reception) of the Chinese Rover, in chronological descending order, with a brief interpretation of the ‘shorthand’ used in the Tweet:
– – – – – –
UHF Satcom @uhf_satcom Feb 11
No signals tonite on 8.4GHz from either the Chinese lunar lander or the rover. Will keep monitoring the situation for a bit…
Meaning: No signals from the moon seen in the 8.4 GHz area
– – – – – –
UHF Satcom @uhf_satcom 8h
Chang’e’3 YUTU lander is alive! Xband signals detected from moon and also EME reflection of Chinese TTC uplink on 7.2GHz – pics to follow!
Meaning: The Chinese control station’s signal from the earth was seen as *reflected* off the moon (an “EME” transmission), as well as the signal from the YUTU lander.
– – – – – –
UHF Satcom @uhf_satcom 8h
First, EME signal from YUTU uplink on 7202.381MHz ; http://pjm.uhf-satcom.com/twtr/yutu_eme_7202381.jpg … a big old signal and a piece of cake to copy in the speaker!
Meaning: The signal from the Chinese control signal as seen bounced off the moon (EME or Earth Moon Earth path).
– – – – – – –
UHF Satcom @uhf_satcom 8h
And, the signal we’ve all been waiting for, direct downlink from the Yutu rover! http://pjm.uhf-satcom.com/twtr/yutu_8462077.jpg … a pretty good signal!
Meaning: The signal from the Yutu rover (the ‘downlink’ signal from the moon to the earth) was picked up.
– – – – – –
UHF Satcom @uhf_satcom 8h
Almost forgot; audio recording of the uplink signal bounced off the moon; http://pjm.uhf-satcom.com/twtr/yutu_uplink_eme.wav … – pretty good signal I reckon!
Meaning: A recording of the uplink signal (the signal from the Chinese control station on earth) as bounced off the moon and received by the UHF-Satcom folks is provided.
– – – – –
UHF Satcom @uhf_satcom 7h
A quick Doppler corrected plot using r00ts amazing software tools; http://pjm.uhf-satcom.com/twtr/yutu_eme_7202377.jpg … this is the 7.2GHz uplink to the Yutu rover
Meaning: The Doppler shift present on the received signal was ‘corrected’.
– – – –
UHF Satcom @uhf_satcom 7h
@LunarOrbiter LOL it has; http://pjm.uhf-satcom.com/twtr/yutu_8462077.jpg … and its transmitting a signal right now!!!
Meaning: A signal received from the Lunar Orbiter was received..
– – – –
UHF Satcom @uhf_satcom 7h
http://pjm.uhf-satcom.com/twtr/yutu_84620756.jpg … Doppler corrected signal from Yutu rover, pretty strong signals, in fact almost the best I have seen! I need a QSL!
Meaning: Signal from Yutu rover shown on a spectral display screen grab.
– – – – – –
UHF Satcom @uhf_satcom 7h
Another shot of Net-SDR displaying 8MHz lump of band 2 – FM;
Meaning: A reference to the RFSpace Net-SDR (network-interfaced Software Defined Radio) which is desired by the UHF_Satcom folks.
– – – – – –
@WH521 http://pjm.uhf-satcom.com/twtr/yutu_8462072.jpg … there you go – hot off the Spectavue press… FFT from Yutu rover, pretty good signals too! btw WWW fixed…
Meaning: Yuto Rover signal being shown on a screen grab again.
Oops, M ods/A nthony – a ‘hot’ one stuck in the spam queue …
Sorry Moon, their is a no return policy!
Is this like a top-secret mission or what ?
No official word from China ?
I imagine they are busy trying to establish comms 🙂
It is after all ~ 1.5 light-seconds away.
Get-r-done.
Concerning the low price & quality of a variety of chinese products: Some of the stuff sold is simply the rubbish which didn´t pass Q.C. at companies who are aware of quality. We can safely assume, that there are chinese manufacturers (engineers, workers) who can & do built quality products: From engines for BMW motorcycles to high-end hifi equipment and Iphones. There are on the other hand also those shrewd chinese who get hold of the second qualitiy or even the “Q.C. failed” rubbish and sell it on for low prices – attracting the price-sensitive customer…
As far as german cars (or motorcycles) go: I think the best days quality wise ended the 90s and perhaps the early years of 2000. This is just a general statement, there are some model-ranges that hold up better than others (VW Vans for example). The trend to fill the vehicles with electronic gizzmos has resulted in reduced reliability and lots of quirks. Software problems can cause gear-shifting difficulties, excessive consumption, erratic “light shows”, unmotivated running on emergency-mode, and a lot of other entertainment. Only the drivers can appreciate the “fun” you can have.
If you want to know more about China, I´d recommend reading “When China Rules The World” by Martin Jaques. Check it out.
One last bit concerning quality, reputation and how this can change:
The label “Made in Germany” was introduced in the 19. century because of british threats to stop imports from Germany unless they be labelled. This was to ascertain that every consumer could distinguish german products because these had a reputation for beeing of inferior quality. So “Made in Germany” initially meant “crap”. Not quite what it means today.
Last not least: I fully agree with Timothy Sorensen.
“was has failed” Has were it weawy? Are do the reason knowed?
IT’S ALIIIVE “China’s Jade Rabbit comes BACK from the DEAD”
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/02/13/china_moon_rover_jade_rabbit_alive/
Zombie Lunar rover… lol
timothy sorenson says:
February 12, 2014 at 1:35 pm
I think praising them for what they have accomplished and encouraging them further is the only correct response.
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You, sir, are a master of scorching, one-liner, satire. Impeccable delivery. Well played!
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Hoser says:
February 12, 2014 at 6:54 pm
Sounds like the Sherman v. the Panzer or the Wildcat v. the Mitsubishi Zero.
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True. But w/a captured Zero, we built the Hellcat, and that turned things around & pasted the Zero.
Martin A says:
February 12, 2014 at 3:33 pm
Quality is best defined as whatever the customer chooses it to be.
Isn’t the fact that Walmart is packed with Chinese made goods a clue that the Chinese have understood *exactly* what quality is (so far as the US consumer is concerned) and are delivering it by the container shipful?
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Very much this ^^^
I repair watches. The vast majority of watch movements from China are horrendous piles of excrement fitted to cheap fakes and “market” watches but you can also buy a full tourbillon with retrograde day and date, designed and made in China, for under 5k of your American dollars. They compare very favourably with equivalent Swiss models (at 4 or 5 x the price) in terms of quality, accuracy and durability
The point is that China is perfectly capable of producing everything from cheap junk to very high quality goods, they’re happy to supply at the price point their customers want, and. at a given price point they’ll beat most of the world in terms of quality.
‘The report of my death was an exaggeration’. Mark Twain
Further reports on the signals being received *directly* from the moon (these are reports directly from an observer seeing the transmissions from the Chinese craft/vehicles and *not* filtered info from news mediots):
– – – – – –
Paolo @plutogno 9h
@uhf_satcom can you tell whether the downlink is from the HGA? it would mean that the antenna + camera mast is still useable
UHF Satcom 9H
@plutogno A good question, based on previous signals I would reckon what I see is from the LGA. So far only seen 1 ‘test’ via the HGA
– – – – –
UHF Satcom @uhf_satcom 1h
Nice clear skies and great signals from Yutu rover!
FFT — http://pjm.uhf-satcom.com/twtr/yutu_8462081_130214.jpg …
audio – http://pjm.uhf-satcom.com/twtr/yutu_downlink_130214.wav … –
freq 8462.081MHz +- Doppler
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Hmmm … this seems to one of those persistent ‘urban legends’ … from here I find this:
Incidentally, let’s dispel an aviation legend right here: the F6F Hellcat was NOT designed after a Zero was captured intact during attacks on Aleutian islands early in the war. By that time the prototype was already flying and the primary value of the captured Zero was that it told the Navy and Grumman Aircraft that their basic design assumptions had been dead on the money.
Also this: History Spotlight: The Myth of the F6F and the Akutan Zero
In reality, the Hellcat had been in the works for more than a year before Koga’s crash. Grumman was looking to build a superior version of the F4F Wildcat using a more powerful engine – initially, the Wright R-2600, but soon the superior Pratt & Whitney R-2800. The size of that engine meant that the entire plane had to be larger; the landing gear moved from the fuselage to the lower wings to provide clearance for the larger propeller; visibility for the pilot was greatly improved; and the plane had far greater range. In all, it was a very different airplane from the Wildcat even when it was first ordered – on June 30, 1941, a full six months before the start of the Pacific War and a year before the recovery of Koga’s Zero.
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This may be where this ‘myth’ first appeared, in the first edition of the book “Thousand-Mile War: World War II in Alaska and the Aleutians” By Brian Garfield.
That incorrect rumor is shown corrected in this 1995 ADDENDUM here on page 52 of the second edition of the book “Thousand-Mile War”.
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I recently bought some (very expensive) New Zealand Merino wool shirts for a toddler, from a very expensive all New Zealand specialty clothing store in a very expensive SF Bay area shopping mall.
I expected to find that they were made by Canterbury Woolen Mills, or some other fine Kiwi establishment. Not so, essentially 100% of everything NZ Merino woolen, they had in the store was made in China. The store freely admitted that all of their manufacturing was now done in China. Simple matter of economics. Kiwis don’t work for free, and maybe they also have minimum wage laws too.
By the way, the quality of manufacture was spectacular; totally impeccable. You can manufacture in China, if you keep control of the process, and have your own QA system built in. No, made in China clothes that you find in Walmart, do NOT compare in quality to the Kiwi woolen stuff from this specialty store, but they are many times cheaper at Walmart.
I bought five pairs of Chinese made shoes from Walmart; all at once, sneakers, and dress shoes and casuals. Cost me $60 for the whole shebang, including California’s punitive sales tax.. That was at least five years ago, and all five pairs are still going strong. I did finally ditch the Nike sneakers that I wore into Walmart, the day I bought all this stuff; well it’s embarrassing walking around with sneakers that have the soles taped on with duck tape, after having worn out the original edges.
I think the governing principle is the “poorly manufactured” part of the China story. So don’t buy those poorly manufactured things.
Nikon, builds a whole lot of their cameras and lenses n China (in their own factory). Mostly their consumer introductory stuff, and although some of them look cheap, their optical performance is still first class; they just may not last as long. Nikon also has a big offshore Nikon plant in Thailand, and everything built there is up to their prime Japanese factory standards. That place was shut down for a while during the Fukushima (odd name) accident, and Tsunami.
I’d still like to see smart manufacturing returned to the USA, so we can use some of our own coal to fuel their manufacture.
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_Jim says:
February 13, 2014 at 11:50 am
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I stand corrected. Dang the History Channel.