The Only Coin On Mars--A 1909 LWC!

VDB ?

Or will we need a new grading system if they un-earth (un-mars?) some alien currency of some kind?

TreeMonkey--thanks for posting that!
I'm now reminded the coin is roughly parallel to the ground.
It should be interesting to see how much dust collects.

Updated photo of the 1909 VDB Lincoln Cent on Mars. This was shot on 10/2/13. It's at the maximum detail level for the MAHLI, Mars Hand Lens Imager at 14 micrometers per pixel.

I want one for Christmas!



Full details at http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA17365 and a 5.7 MB .tiff file that shows the highest detail that the camera can pick up.

I'm not going to update all the other Mars/Cent threads, just this one.

Ben

Yes.

Thanks for sharing.

I can just imagine it:
"Send your coin to Mars for conservation. Return time estimated to be 180 years.
Do your heirs a favor and submit now.
Only genuine Martian dust used. No harsh abrasives.
Moderate ultraviolet light damage is a plus.
Minimal atmospheric damage guaranteed.
Be the first on your block."

The weird thing is that the dust is not just settling on the surface, it's sticking to the coin for the most part. The Test Focus plate is mounted on the end of a horizontal "box".

I don't know how much of an angle the cent has been exposed to while it rolls around, but the change in angle back to a 90 degree angle to the surface of Mars and the movement doesn't seem to be causing the dust to drop off. Maybe static electricity is holding it in place.




As I see it, the value of the coin, after NASA did what ever they did to it before they sent it up made the coin Harshly Cleaned "Genuine" with VF (?) Details. I might pay $25 for it. Now, NASA Mission, sent to Mars, I'm thinking it's going to add, let's say $100,000 at least!

The bad news... shipping. the original mission was $2.5 billion, including $1.8 billion for spacecraft development and science investigations and additional amounts for launch and operations. So you'd have to work with NASA, design another spacecraft to go to Mars with a special Rover to find the original remove the 1909 V.D.B without damaging the coin or the Curiosity Rover.

More bad news. NASA would have to design and build a SECOND spacecraft to return the 1909 V.D.B. using all remote loading of the cargo, assent staging and control for the return to earth.

I'm thinking $3 billion for the launch from Earth to Mars. This spacecraft will need to have the remote spacecraft and rover inside. Maybe another $5 billion? $6 billion.

Development time 4-5 years, total cost of coin $100,035.00 to maybe $1,000,035. Then $9 to $12 billion in "shipping" + splashdown recovery cost,

So maybe $15 billion to bring it back. The real problem is China sending their own spacecraft up to grab it and start making copies.

I'm thinking it may be a few hundred years before we could get to the point where we can get the coin and get back to earth with the coin and auction it off on ebay.

I tried to use the little "calculator" on ebay to figure the fees for listing, sales amount and PayPal's part, but ebay crashed for about an hour.

I think I'll stick to a 1909 V.D.B. here on Earth. But if it had been a 1909-S V.D.B.. I'd be all over it.

My sister sent me this snip with the following:

Matt, below is part of the panel. Am I the only female looking at this thing? That is a pallet of 6 eyeshadow colors! They'd look good on me! I just can't believe they aren't eye shadows! The case, the shape...they are eyeshadows! Nasa is pulling a foolie!