Spacecraft Orion was stupider than smartphone

orion

As it turned out, the Orion spacecraft, which after a series of tests will be sent to Mars, is controlled by a computer that is inferior to a smartphone. The machine on board Orion uses a processor 12 years ago, which in the past were equipped with Apple laptops.

As NASA engineer Matt Lemke told Computerworld, the main thing in an interplanetary spacecraft is reliability and resistance to external influences, including cosmic radiation. The Orion is designed to deliver people to deep space, so reliability is more important than trying to follow the latest computer fashion.

It is much slower and weaker Core i5. Perhaps even in speed inferior to your smartphone. But it's not about speed, it's about reliability. We must be sure that he will always work, "Lemke explained.

The NASA space agency often relies on outdated but proven technology. For example, in the rover "Kyuriosity" installed a computer that is also not smarter than a smartphone.

orion comp

Thus, the main computer Orion uses the Honeywell International on-board computer originally created for the Boeing 787 airliner. The computer under control of all the systems of the unmanned spacecraft is protected by a durable body, has a thickened board and uses other design solutions that minimize vibration.

The only thing we really wanted to see in this computer is the resistance to radiation. It is difficult to disable. We tested different parts of the computer. Under the influence of radiation, he may have to reboot, but after that he will continue to work, "said the engineer.

Despite a small reboot time (only 20 seconds), the main computer is secured by two backups. According to Lemke, the probability of failure of all three computers is 1 to 1,870,000.

At the same time, they all use IBM PowerPC 750FX 2002 single-core processors of the model year. With such processors Apple completed its computers until 2005. The chip that the Orion computer now uses has been seen in some versions of the iBook G3 laptop in the past.

Many of the technologies that are applied to Orion are borrowed either from aviators or from the military. But that does not mean that the new NASA spacecraft does not use advanced technologies. So, Orion is the first spacecraft with the capability of ultra-high-speed data transmission on the TTEthernet line in emergency situations. For normal communication, it has gigabit Ethernet.

In NASA, Orion is not considered a masterpiece, but placed above other space vehicles, applying to it the word "state-of-the-art" - corresponding to the last word of technology.

Recall that the test flight unmanned Orion version was held on December 5. 4.5 hours after the launch with the help of a Delta IV launch vehicle, the spacecraft successfully landed in the Pacific Ocean. Then the forces of the military and NASA apparatus was delivered to the land.