the eXile - The Virtual Voyeur

#12 | July 17 - 30, 1997

In This Issue

by Cy Borg

Space Cars and Jesus on Mars

Visiting the Mars Pathfinder Mission World Wide Web site is a great way to find detailed information about the Pathfinder mission and the experiments being conducted, as well to see just how sophisticated Internet technology has become and what it looks like and does when it pushed to it limits. The main site for following the Mars mission is http://mpfwww.jpl.nasa.gov

The first thing to notice is that the site is so popular that it must be "mirrored" on dozens of different web servers all over the planet. By placing multiple copies of Pathfinder across the Internet, more users can have access to the site's content. Traffic jams have been reduced by creating multiple distribution points. This is not to say that the site accesses quickly. With heavy photos of Mars rocks, data that is constantly updating, and our old friend-the Moscow phone-Pathfinder does take some patience to experience and is another painful reminder that we're not in 56K baud-standard America.

The Pathfinder Site is easy to manage since it consists mostly of text. It's also written in more or less idiot-friendly language, except when they get into things like "multispectral spots" and other rock talk. There are tons of graphics too, but they're almost all optional. When Cy viewed the site, Cy found information on such Solar System-famous rocks as Barnicle Bill, Yogi and Flat Top (they got 'em on Mars too!), as well as Rover Status, Current Science Results and the Weather. If you think that The Weather Channel is great, then you won't want to miss this. (It was -104 Fahrenheit on Mars, or -75.5 Centigrade, the other morning... and they never have hot water!)

Even if trajectory is not your thing, you might find the Mars Pathfinder Navigation subsection (actually a link to a different web site) somewhat interesting. With information ranging from orbit determination and maneuver determination to trajectory correction maneuvers (TCMs) and the Deep Space Network, there is something here to amaze and amuse the whole family. Especially if that family is full of nerds.

There's a really cool time-lapse movie of the Rover boppin' around the surface of Mars, making friends with the rocks and touching things. However, it took almost 10 minutes to download by modem and turned out to be the one that they've been showing on CNN every 15 minutes for the last few days.

If you have the time and patience to experience something really cool on this site, check out either the Panorama of the Sagan Memorial Station or Virtual Reality Models and Animations of the Pathfinder Mission both of which require special "Plug-ins" that add the latest technological bells & whistles to your browser software. If you don't have these plug-ins, you can follow links right on this site and download them for free. Be warned, these downloads will take a while to get. (Once you have them, however, you can use them to view other animated activities and virtual realities happening on the net.)

If you simply don't have the patience, check out the Archive of Current Images section. Here you can view photos taken each day (called a "sol" on Mars) and read descriptions about how one pile of red dirt differs from another. Of particular interest are the photos taken on Sol 8 (July 11). Here you will see the Monster Panorama in "stereo." And if you have those red and blue paper 3D glasses from the 1950's, then you can see the Monster Mars Panorama in 3D.

There is so much data and information on the Pathfinder web site that it seems as if NASA is playing its own version of glasnost in order to court public opinion and convince us that there really is a good reason for spending billions of dollars putting a gadget-heavy Tonka Toy onto Mars.

Elsewhere in the heavens the Mir Space Station limps along. But out on the Web, Mir is flourishing with activity. A good place to start is the Space Station Mir that is actually compiled and maintained by NASA. With very thorough cross-references to almost everything, one could bounce around this site for hours learning about the history, experiments and current events aboard the Mir. Aside from links to over 30 different web sites relating to the Mir, you'll find information on how to spot the Mir from various parts of earth with the naked eye. According to their Mir Visibility Data, the Mir will be visible in Moscow on July 18th at 04:13 (local time) traveling from South to Southeast for 3 minutes at around 12 degrees above the horizon. Please let me know if you see it.

Just in case you were thinking that this had turned into one of those cheerful, fun-for-the-whole-family Internet review columns, Cy have news for you: Mars Attacks is the official movie web site from Warner Bros. Here you'll find lots of cool photo stills from that silly movie, as well as sketches from the original story board, bios of the movie characters and actors, and background information on the Martians' anatomy and weaponry. Mars Attacks Ate My Balls shows how easy it is for an individual with a sick idea to put together their own attractive web site using elements readily available on the Internet. Long live the First Amendment!

Cy had no idea that Marvin the Martian-the little space alien from the Bugs Bunny cartoons-had such a wide following across the Internet. Have a laugh at http://www.primenet.com/~jafo/marvin/ Here you will find links to other Martin sites, Martin's filmography, numerous stills from his comic adventures, and ".WAV" files that you can download and plug into your computer to make it say things like, "At last, after 2000 years of work, the Iludium Q-36 explosive space modulator," "Where's the kaboom? There was supposed to be an earth shattering kaboom," or Cy favorite, "Oh drat these computers, they're so naughty and complex I could pinch them."

The Martian Consulate offers you the opportunity to purchase "a beautiful 11 inch by 14 inch parchment Certificate of Deed Registration staking a claim for 1 square mile of prime Martian real estate on the Planet MARS!" Each Certificate comes beautifully inscribed with the name of your Recipient and a description of the exact, unique location of their claim on the Red Planet. Your Certificate is also signed and dated by the Martian Consulate Registrar, and bears a stunning golden, engraved likeness of the Martian Consulate seal. Your Recipient also receives a Martian Consulate Plate of Survey, a map visually pinpointing the location of their property claim. Finally, your Recipient's name and address are recorded in the Martian Consulate Mars Deed Registry, safely secured within a vault of Bank UBS, head quartered in Geneva, Switzerland, a document which will be presented to the governing body of Mars "when such governing body is established." For those reaching for their credit cards, $29.95 will do. Mounting is optional, and mugs are available for $12.95. As they say ... A perfect gift for Birthdays, Christmas, Hanukkah, Valentine's Day, Graduations, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Weddings, New Borns, Anniversaries, and Engagements!

And if its a conspiracy that you're looking for (and these days who isn't?) then point you browser to A Religious Discovery From Pathfinder. Here you'll learn about the stories that they're not reporting on your local news such as "Pathfinder Image Reveals Image of Christ on Martian Rock." Shocking photos show images of the face of Jesus on one of the rocks sampled by the Rover. According to the author of the site, "Apparently, before the image was released, the face of Jesus was digitally removed and smoothed over." Cy wonder if that square mile is still for sale?

Lastly, the people who make the Mars Bar must be ecstatic these days with all of the free advertising that they are receiving. Just for fun Cy pointed my browser to http://www.mars.com just to see what Cy might find. Apparently so did millions of other people. This site shows a chocolate bar superimposed onto the Martian landscape and a message indicating that (like everyone else) you probably dropped by to see photos of Mars. A click on their only link politely delivers you to the official Mars photos. Next stop: planet Snickers.

Since no one has been requesting browser-ready versions of the Cy Borg files for free by e-mail, that offer has been withdrawn. Don't write to cyborg@matrix.ru, and don't send your comments, feedback or suggestions for future installments of Virtual Voyeur. Cy'll see you around.