How far is the communications range of the rover?
The rover telecom system was functionally tested (BER –> Bit Error Rate tests, etc.) in the Arroyo (dry stream bed) next to JPL up to a distance of 250 meters. It performed quite well under environmental conditions typical of a warm (35C) August day. Another less controlled test (done about a year earlier) of the telecom system was made at a farther distance and under more extreme conditions. A stationary radio modem, antenna and computer interface was set up outside on the Mesa antenna range. Another modem and laptop computer were placed on the bed of a truck, with someone monitoring its operation. The truck was driven to different locations on the Mesa as well as down the winding paved road to the main part of the lab. The distance down to the lab was well over 700 meters and given the surrounding buildings and other structures, had quite an abundance of multipath reflections. The radio modems performed well under those conditions and did not lose communications. Both of these tests
