Mars rover Daily Updates -Spirit Making Ground - Opportunity-A Beautiful Grind

NASA - JPL ^ | 2-24-2004 | NASA/JPL

[Phil V.]

Daily Updates - February 24, 2004

Spirit Status for sol 51 Making Ground posted Feb. 24, 2 pm PST

To inspire a morning "run" on sol 51, which ended at 3:15 p.m. Tuesday, PST, Spirit woke up to Vangelis’ "Chariots of Fire." The rover deployed its arm, took microscopic images of the soil in front of it and then proceeded toward its target, "Middle Ground." Spirit drove 30 meters (98.4 feet), breaking its own record for a single-sol traverse. Along the way, Spirit paused to image rocks on both sides of the drive path with its panoramic camera.

The auto-navigational software that drove the last 12 meters (39.4 feet) of the traverse to the "Middle Ground" target warned Spirit that the slope into the hollow that houses it was too steep (according to parameters set by rover engineers). Spirit then paced along the rim, looking for a safe way down. Unable to locate a secure path into the crater before the sol ended, Spirit ended up facing slightly west of north instead of northeast, as called for by the plan. This orientation will reduce the amount of data the rover can return (due to interference between the UHF antenna and items on the rover equipment deck), but it will be corrected in the coming sols.

As of today, Spirit has moved 183.25 meters (601.21 feet) and is now roughly 135 meters (442.91 feet) from its landing site, Columbia Memorial Station.

The intent for the next several sols will be to drive Spirit into "Middle Ground" and take a full panorama of the surrounding area to identify scientifically interesting rocks.

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Opportunity Status for sol 30 A Beautiful Grind posted Feb. 24, 11:15 am PST

On sol 30, which ended at 2:56 a.m. Tuesday, February 24, Opportunity performed its first rock abrasion tool operation on a rock target known as 'McKittrick Middle Rat' at the El Capitan site inside the crater. The tool shaved the rock over a period of two hours, grinding into a total depth of about 4 millimeters (.16 inches).

The auspicious day began with the song 'Rock'n Me' by Steve Miller and some miniature thermal emission spectrometer sky surveys and sky stares to study the atmosphere. After completing these activities, Opportunity took a short siesta to recharge its batteries. The rover has been doing a lot of science work at night, and the season on Mars is changing to winter, so the rover has less energy to work with than it did earlier in the mission. The martian days are getting shorter and the sun angle is not allowing either rover to power up the solar panels as much as in the past.

Opportunity woke up from its nap at 11:30 Local Solar Time on Mars to run through the series of commands required to retract the alpha particle X-ray spectrometer and close its doors; take several microscopic images of another nearby rock abrasion tool target called 'Guadalupe;' flip the wrist; take a microscopic image of "McKittrick Middle Rat;" and place the rock abrasion tool on its target to run at 13:00 Local Solar Time.

After the abrasion tool was retracted, a series of microscopic images of the scene were taken, and the alpha particle X-ray spectrometer was successfully placed into the abrasion tool's hole late in the day.

Some additional panoramic camera, miniature thermal emission spectrometer readings, and hazard avoidance camera imagery was completed through the day.

The plan for sol 31, which will end at 3:36 a.m. Wednesday, February 25, is to continue getting long Moessbauer readings of the rock abrasion tool hole and to prepare the tool for more work again on sol 33 or 34.

[eddie willers]

Wow, Phil....thanks for the link!

I am unable to image the Left/Right (don't know why) BUT the cross-eyed reverse images I can get to "snap" into a glorious 3-D!

Please be sure to remember to post the reversed images as well as the standard version for those of us who are "cross-eye capable".

Thanks.

[tet68]

Looks like those "nodules" are set pretty well in the matrix, to be ground like that.

I'll bet those scientists are wishing they had some way to wash that surface, I'll bet it would look a lot different wet!

[Phil V.]

On NASA/JPL'S microscopic page of sol-30 this image preceeds the grind images. If this is the site of the grind then it is an area that they have not previously shown to us. I was expecting them to grind on "El Capitan".

I think that they've deceived us. I think that this is actually a picture of the top of Betty Crocker's devil's food cake!

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[FireTrack]

Enlargement from the "grind".

[Phil V.]

Good eye!

Now, WTF is it???

[Phil V.]

stay tuned . . . I'll see if I can make a stereo view of it . . .

[Djarum]

Look at the bottom left corner of your enlargement, just right of the shadow are six dots in a circular pattern.

[Phil V.]

Here's a stereo of "the thing" . . .

LEFT/RIGHT/LEFT

In 3-D it's clearly not a grinding artifact.

[ElkGroveDan]

That's one thing you have to say about those nuclear power sources, they keep on cranking out the juice, night or day, winter, spring, summer, or fall

Yep. One of the Viking landers from 1976 stayed alived and working until 1982 -- six years, longer if you count the nearly 2-year trip to the red planet!

[FireTrack]

"Look at the bottom left corner of your enlargement, just right of the shadow are six dots in a circular pattern."

There are numerous interesting artifacts in this grind. I hope NASA spends more time here and takes more images with greater magnification.

I saw what you're refering too. Notice the strange pattern above and connecting to the circular dots (almost a weave). Also check out the 4 dots in a vertical line just below the right side of the black square and to the left of the red circle. More interesting objects in the complete image.

[FireTrack]

It is clearly not a grinding artifact as you say. It's unusual enough for NASA to take a closer look of this as well as additional objects in this grind.

[FireTrack]

Did you notice the different shade/color in the center of the circle of dots?

[Phil V.]

Here's a better stereogram of "the thing". (THE LEFT PIC is clearer but has the shadow of the "probe"

LEFT/RIGHT/LEFT

[Phil V.]

Any thoughts on what FireTrack noticed in #25?

[Phil V.]

check out #25 . . .

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[FireTrack]

Very helpful! It sure looks it might actually be something in 3D alright. Hopefully NASA will be posting additional images.

I find these recessed areas unusual as well. They are numerous, have similar sizes and shapes and most have tapered edges.

[Phil V.]

I wonder if they have a little can of compressed air to dust off these grind surfaces.

[Aracelis]

I know you folks are thinking "fossil", and it does indeed show a spiral-like shape, but let me caution you: I've seen pyrite concretions that looked like fossil gastropods. Must have more data...

[Lawdoc]

What are your thougthts on the symmetrical markings in the lower left of #25? It at first blush seem to be similar to an imprint caused by your object boted in the upper right.