Mentor Blogs

If you watched the live broadcast of NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity rover landing on the surface of Mars, you know it was a nail-biter. People all over the world—especially engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and technology firms the world over that had contributed systems and components to the mission—waited with baited breath for the successful completion of a number … Read More

Milaero, Mil-Aero, Mars, Atlas V, Mentor, Mentor Graphics, Mentor.com, Aerospace, Geek, Hardware, JPL, Cape Canaveral, Kennedy Space Center, Computer, Embedded Systems, Electronic, Engineer, Military, Software, Technology, MSL, nasa

NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) spacecraft, housing the unmanned Curiosity rover, set upon a monumental, 9-month, 352-million-mile journey to its final destination–Gale Crater near the base of Mount Sharp on Mars–with help from a powerful Atlas V 541 launch vehicle. In fact, this November 2011 mission marked the first launch of United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V 541 configuration. Roughly … Read More

Military, Milaero, Mentor, Atlas V, aviation, Mentor Graphics, Mentor.com, Mil-Aero, Aerospace, Gale Crater, EDA, electrical, Geek, Hardware, Curiosity, design, Mars, Embedded Systems, Electronic, Engineer, Mount Sharp, Technology, zapping, rover, Software, MSL, nasa

Curiosity (cu·ri·os·i·ty, noun) is defined as: 1. a desire to know or learn; 2. an object that arouses interest, as by being novel or extraordinary; and 3. from the Latin “curiosus” meaning careful, diligent, thoughtful, devoted; elaborate, complicated; meddlesome, officious, prying, interfering, curious, inquisitive; and a spy or scout, informer. Certainly, the Curiosity rover and its mission—dedicated … Read More

Mars Science Laboratory, Mars, Mentor, Cape Canaveral, Military, MSL, nasa, Aerospace, Technology, Mentor Graphics, Geek, Mentor.com, Hardware, Mil-Aero, Engineer, Milaero, Fla.

As I talked about last week, the news lately has been dominated by the Olympics, but NASA managed to grab a few headlines by successfully landing the Curiosity rover on Mars. I have always been interested in space exploration and I am curious about what the inside of embedded systems look like. To me, Curiosity is just an embedded system with 6 wheels and 17 cameras … I have always been impressed … Read More

Mars, nasa

The President’s budget request for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in fiscal year 2011, released 1 Feb. 2010, added $6 billion over five years. The $6 billion increase was accompanied by instructions as to how the money should be invested, which was hotly criticized at the time. Looking back nearly a year later, it’s evident that the additional funding has been a boon … Read More

Military, Milaero, Mentor, Computer, Mentor Graphics, Mentor.com, Mil-Aero, Aerospace, Geek, DoD, George W. Bush, Hardware, Constellation, Mars, COTS, Embedded Systems, Electronic, Engineer, Moon, spacex, Virgin Galactic, nasa, Obama