However, the problem appears to be manageable, and should not jeopardize return of the nearly 2000 images of the jovian system that are to be stored on the recorder for playback during Galileo's two-year mission. New precautions included commands for the tape recorder to wind 25 extra times around a section of tape possibly weakened when the recorder was stuck in rewind mode with the tape immobilized for about 15 hours. This portion near the end of the tape reel has been declared off-limits for future recording. The approach image of Jupiter that Galileo took on October 11 is stored on this portion of tape and hence will not be played back. The tape recorder is a key link in techniques developed to send images and data to Earth without Galileo's high-gain antenna, which is stuck, unusable, in a partially open position.
Scientists are especially disappointed to lose imaging from the closest planned flyby of Io.
Known as Stardust, the mission also will gather and return samples of interstellar dust that the spacecraft encounters during its trip through the solar system to fly by Comet Wild-2 in January 2004. Stardust was selected from among three Discovery proposals funded for further study last February. The Stardust team also did an excellent job of updating their plan to communicate the purpose and results of this exciting mission to educators and the public. The Stardust mission team is led by Principal Investigator Donald Brownlee, University of Washington in Seattle, with Lockheed-Martin Astronautics, Denver, as the contractor building the spacecraft. Jet Propulsion Laboratory will provide project management.