Jim Erickson
Jim Erickson
James "Jim" Erickson is a set decorator. He won the Academy Award for Best Art Direction for his work in Lincoln, and was nominated for There Will Be Blood. He has also done set decoration for Ali and Independence Day...
afraid police
He is persisting in his fears. He was afraid of the police.
brush close dress fairly gets great hold latest might odds radiation rehearsal spacecraft survival wondering
This was a great dress rehearsal for the Io encounters. We've been wondering how the spacecraft might hold up when it gets close to Io. This latest brush with radiation makes us think that the odds of survival may be fairly good.
beyond design distinct either mission original performing plans quite random rover tomorrow vehicles wear
We now have to make long-term plans for the vehicles because they may be around for quite a while. Either mission could end tomorrow with a random part failure. With the rovers already performing well beyond their original design lifetimes, having a part wear out and disable a rover is a distinct possibility at any time.
age-and-aging indication parts showing
It is an indication that more parts may be showing their age.
counts detect flown galileo imagine pulse star surprise
We anticipated the spacecraft's star scanner would detect about 300 to 400 pulse counts of radiation, so imagine our surprise when the instruments showed Galileo had flown through 1,400 pulse counts,
cause choice choices family problem solve tension thanksgiving
It does cause tension in the family when you have to make choices between having Thanksgiving with your family and going off to solve a problem on the spacecraft.
eventually everybody knows later sooner tool
Everybody knows that eventually we will die. They are metal. They are machines. So sooner or later the tool will break.
age age-and-aging arthritis deal equivalent learn senility symptoms whether
As they age, we learn how to deal with the symptoms of old age whether it's the equivalent of arthritis in our joints or senility in our memory.
arm developing instrument keeping mode pack putting
We're developing a mode for keeping the arm out in front. We'll essentially stow it now by putting the instrument pack up over the rover's deck.
hills inside name pick top whether
With the rovers we've actually been able to go look and pick the things we wanted to see whether it was up on top of hills or whether it was down inside the craters, you name it.
activities additional both continue good increasing normal power primarily science solar
The rovers are both in good shape. Normal science activities are increasing as we continue to get additional power out of the solar panels, primarily because the Martian day is getting longer.
discover exploring jupiter unusual
Then again, that's why we're exploring Jupiter and its moons -- to discover these unusual phenomena.
beginning climb hill
Really, all we need to do is get to get to the beginning of McCool Hill, because we can climb the hill in that position.
drive driving good sort test
It's good to be driving again. It was sort of a combination between a test drive and going to an interesting target.