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NASA’s Mars Rover Perseverance is trackable via Geocaching! (TB5EFXK)

MissJenn

By MissJenn
in Trackables

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IceColdUK

+IceColdUK

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, on4bam said:

BTW, is there any reason to be so anxious for the TB to be unlocked? Is it going to be unlocked for a short while only? Is something terrible going to happen should people wait a few days/weeks after the unlocking to log it?


You’re a real fun sponge! ?  The Christmas presents would still be under the Christmas tree for days after 25 December, but most of us kids want to open them on Christmas morning. ? (Local customs may vary.)  Same with Easter eggs.  Same with FTFs.  Same here.

 

I’m not saying it makes any sense, but I’ve been enjoying the ride.

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kunarion

+kunarion

Posted
Posted (edited)
2 hours ago, on4bam said:

is there any reason to be so anxious for the TB to be unlocked?

 

Maybe it's the Christmas morning presents under the tree thing as IceColdUK says.  Also, we know one can't get First To Discover unless one is watching and ready to log it.

 

 

2 hours ago, on4bam said:

Is something terrible going to happen should people wait a few days/weeks after the unlocking to log it?

 

For people hoping to log it, yes, that's a possibility.  Go read about the issues of massive "virtual logs" of TBs that persons never held.  The Tracking Code got onto a list, acquired way too many crazy logs to manage, so now it's locked, nobody can log it.  So this one might have a limited logging window.  It needs to be not locked to get the icon.

 

 

Edited by kunarion
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kunarion

+kunarion

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, on4bam said:

Is something terrible going to happen

 

Anyone else notice that this Trackable cannot be Tracked?  It wasn't even dipped into a cache, I guess it won't be placed into one.  There's no "distance" info nor location info.  It's just a code that appeared in the universe, which is pretty loose for a GZ.  Maybe people logging it will look up where on Mars it is when logged and update its general location.  But I'd bet most don't.  Will it be like a car TB or backpack TB, where nobody mentions its location?  :anicute:

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hcy

+hcy

Posted
Posted
15 hours ago, kunarion said:

It wasn't even dipped into a cache, I guess it won't be placed into one.  There's no "distance" info nor location info.  It's just a code that appeared in the universe

Like 99% of today's trackables. Only appear on lists to be discovered at events etc..

 

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LeataCharity

LeataCharity

Posted
Posted

 

29 minutes ago, CAPTAINVALPO96 said:

Yes because there is no geocaches on Mars for it to visit. Maybe geocaching HQ should make a virtual on Mars as a reward for geocachers and for trackables to visit?

4 minutes ago, CAPTAINVALPO96 said:

I know, but it would just be a virtural for the trackable rovers to visit and NASA said “maybe for future human exploration”. So they would have one as a reward.

Yes, but how would That look on a map? 

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IceColdUK

+IceColdUK

Posted
Posted (edited)
4 hours ago, on4bam said:

 

Isn't geocaching about going outside and finding stuff. Logging stuff from a computer to get a +1 in the statistics is not why most started this hobby. :rolleyes:


I agree about going outside and finding stuff, and ordinarily I wouldn’t consider logging the virtual discovery of a trackable, but this has absolutely nothing to do with a ‘+1’.  I honestly have no idea (and no interest) in how many trackables I’ve logged.  I know this though: none, so far, have been on Mars!

 

I accept that you don’t want to “contaminate” your statistics.  Perhaps you could accept that some of us want to feel in some small (and totally irrational) way part of a trip to Mars?  It’s just a bit of fun! ?

Edited by IceColdUK
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MissJenn

+MissJenn

Posted
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Posted

 

HURRAY! The much-anticipated moment has arrived and geocaching is officially interplanetary.

Thanks to Perseverance for taking #geocachingtomars.

 

Here is a link to NASA’s raw images. https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/multimedia/raw-images/

Can you find the actual, correct image in that large gallery? Be sure to filter for pictures taken by SHERLOC & WATSON.  

 

Once you find the correct image, consider clicking the LIKE button so you can add this image to your favorites. Come back at the beginning of the week to see the public's favorite. Maybe our favorite image can make it to the Image of the Week gallery.

 

Mars Perseverance Rover: trackable page

https://www.geocaching.com/track/details.aspx?id=4638861

 

Geocaching HQ created a script that took almost 17,000 accounts off the watchlist after the first log was posted so that email inboxes would not be unnecessarily flooded. You are certainly welcome to add this trackable back to your Watchlist if you wish. 

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cerberus1

+cerberus1

Posted
Posted
4 hours ago, thebruce0 said:

Has anyone spotted the inevitable complaint that HQ removed their watch on the TB?  :laughing:

So glad Watson has done its job! Congrats to all involved!

 

So you're aware...  I never entered this on my watchlist, yet had notifications. 

Luckily I caught it at four, didn't know what to do to stop it (why I posted...) and now find it might have been "scrubbed" while I was watching.

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slickriptide

slickriptide

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, steben6 said:

How is it that people were able to log the discovery way back in February?  just curious.

 

Back in February, NASA published a blog featuring the artwork from the geocoin and an explanation of how it was constructed. It's covered by a disc of spacesuit visor material, which is being monitored for how well it lives up to exposure to the Martian environment. Anyone who happened to find that page would get the code early. I'm still unsure about how sporting it would be to just link to it now that the official photo is available (even though the coin is barely discernable in the current picture, it may be that if the camera takes another calibration pic with a different filter that it will show up better). Anyway, a bit of googling will get pretty much anyone the info if they really want it.

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Max and 99

+Max and 99

Posted
Posted
52 minutes ago, cerberus1 said:

 

So you're aware...  I never entered this on my watchlist, yet had notifications. 

Luckily I caught it at four, didn't know what to do to stop it (why I posted...) and now find it might have been "scrubbed" while I was watching.

I'm really curious about how this happened. 

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MissJenn

+MissJenn

Posted
  • Author
Posted

We began today with the very exciting log posted by "mikbalt" as the very first geocacher who discovered the Mars Perseverance Rover trackable item via NASA's raw images gallery. "mikbalt" is Dr. Francis McCubbin whom you may recall as being instrumental in this entire saga.

 

Here is his eloquent Discovery log: https://coord.info/TL1CAJ8QD

 

In all the excitement and volume of discoveries/logging today, you may have been hoping to see this and missed it. Enjoy his prose. Savor those thoughts. Let’s go exploring . . .

 

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IceColdUK

+IceColdUK

Posted
Posted (edited)
4 hours ago, Spandoc said:

Well, I found it.  A string of numbers like this ######   ##-# and underneath that two letters and three more numbers.  I have tried lots of combinations of those, but none works.  I guess this is why I dislike puzzle caches so much.  :-( 

 

 

25 minutes ago, MissJenn said:

Here is his eloquent Discovery log: https://coord.info/TL1CAJ8QD

 

Spandoc, if you check out the first log on the trackable (link posted by MissJenn above), you'll see that mikbalt actually gives the url of the image we've been waiting for - i.e. the one taken on Mars, not one of those that have been around since last July!  The image is quite faint but you can read the 9 character code.

Edited by IceColdUK
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Spandoc

+Spandoc

Posted
Posted
4 hours ago, Spandoc said:

Well, I found it.  A string of numbers like this ######   ##-# and underneath that two letters and three more numbers.  I have tried lots of combinations of those, but none works.  I guess this is why I dislike puzzle caches so much.  :-( 

With some help I was able to get this, thanks!

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steben6

+steben6

Posted
Posted
4 hours ago, MissJenn said:

We began today with the very exciting log posted by "mikbalt" as the very first geocacher who discovered the Mars Perseverance Rover trackable item via NASA's raw images gallery. "mikbalt" is Dr. Francis McCubbin whom you may recall as being instrumental in this entire saga.

 

Here is his eloquent Discovery log: https://coord.info/TL1CAJ8QD

 

In all the excitement and volume of discoveries/logging today, you may have been hoping to see this and missed it. Enjoy his prose. Savor those thoughts. Let’s go exploring . . .

 

How cool is that!

 

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steben6

+steben6

Posted
Posted
7 hours ago, slickriptide said:

 

Back in February, NASA published a blog featuring the artwork from the geocoin and an explanation of how it was constructed. It's covered by a disc of spacesuit visor material, which is being monitored for how well it lives up to exposure to the Martian environment. Anyone who happened to find that page would get the code early. I'm still unsure about how sporting it would be to just link to it now that the official photo is available (even though the coin is barely discernable in the current picture, it may be that if the camera takes another calibration pic with a different filter that it will show up better). Anyway, a bit of googling will get pretty much anyone the info if they really want it.

Yes, I do know that the code has been shared for quite a while.  I'm curious about how it was logged BEFORE HQ unlocked it.

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ambegador

+ambegador

Posted
Posted
14 hours ago, MissJenn said:

SHERLOC & WATSON may take higher resolution image later, but that could be several sols from now. 

Did NASA have Watson take pics of the calibration plate while on Earth? Would be interesting to compare the image quality with the beamed images. Maybe some effect due to atmosphere?

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G.O. Cash

+G.O. Cash

Posted
Posted (edited)
5 hours ago, steben6 said:

Hey, thanks for the heads up on logging today!  I appreciate that.
I'm just curious why anybody would want to backdate their logs.  I don't get it.

 

I don‘t think it‘s necessarily people backdating their logs. I logged on 3/11/21 when I became aware of the rover trackable, but I entered the log in the Geocaching app, not on the webpage. The log showed in the app, but of course not on the webpage, which was locked until yesterday. I guess many people did the same, beginning on the day when Miss Jenn started this thread; as soon as the webpage was unlocked, all those logs from the app were synced and appeared on the webpage as well.

 

PS ok, maybe *some* people did backdate their logs, especially the one with a log from 2017 ??.

Edited by G.O. Cash
PS added.
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GeoawareGSA1

+GeoawareGSA1

Posted
Posted
3 minutes ago, 4kidssearch said:

Hi,

I've been reading the post from the beginning but I have no clue where I can see the right picture to find the trackable?

Can anybody help?

Cheers, 4kidssearch

There are a few ways to do it, but here's one fun, sleuthy option:

"Look through NASA’s raw images. Can you find the image of our trackable item in that large gallery? Be sure to filter for pictures taken by SHERLOC and WATSON."

I just did that and it was one of the top images, after filtering. It will probably drop lower over time, but was easy to find just now. Happy hunting!

--Matt

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simon_cornelus

+simon_cornelus

Posted
Posted
6 minutes ago, 4kidssearch said:

Hi,

I've been reading the post from the beginning but I have no clue where I can see the right picture to find the trackable?

Can anybody help?

Cheers, 4kidssearch

You can find more info in one of the post by MissJenn.

Or visit the raw images and look for the images by the sience camera SHERLOC - WATSON. 

It will probably have most likes...

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thebruce0

+thebruce0

Posted
Posted
7 hours ago, G.O. Cash said:

I don‘t think it‘s necessarily people backdating their logs. I logged on 3/11/21 when I became aware of the rover trackable, but I entered the log in the Geocaching app, not on the webpage. The log showed in the app, but of course not on the webpage, which was locked until yesterday.

 

Yes that only happened in the official app. I tested it and verified the app considered it discovered, and it kept the log in the app, so there was no way to tell that it wasn't - the website did not show the log while it was locked. The other test was to see if it was cached and would be posted as soon as the TB was unlocked. That did not happen. I had to post a new discover log, which I did via the web.  Based on that result, I conclude that the app had a caching bug (or cached logs were cleared before the TB was unlocked).  My prior log was not posted automatically nor backdated.  So I believe all the "old" logs were backdated manually by the geocachers.

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