[meteorite-list] Opportunity Posing Problem in Mars Mission

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue May 3 13:18:39 2005
Message-ID: <200505031718.j43HI6s05160_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/Stories/0,1413,206~22097~2848411,00.html

Opportunity posing problem in Mars mission
By Kimm Groshong
Pasadena Star News
May 2, 2005

LA CANADA FLINTRIDGE -- NASA's Opportunity rover has driven itself
deeply into a large ripple on the surface of Mars. Rover mission
planners remain optimistic that the slight dune will not be the rover's
final resting place.

Opportunity has been parked in the same spot, with half to
three-quarters of each of its six wheels submerged below the martian
surface, since April 24.

But Jim Erickson, the project manager for the rovers at the Jet
Propulsion Laboratory said it was inaccurate to say Opportunity is
stuck. "Stuck implies that we've actually tried to get it out and have
been unsuccessful. That is not the case.'

Instead, the team has deliberately left Opportunity where it stopped and
is experimenting with testbed rovers at JPL to determine the best way to
get the rover out.

Within the in situ instrument laboratory, team members test potential
driving scenarios and maneuvers with two full-sized rovers. One is
strikingly similar to Spirit and Opportunity. The other is missing some
components to make it more akin to the rovers operating under Mars
conditions.

By reviewing images of Opportunity's present location taken by the
vehicle's cameras, the team is trying to reproduce the consistency of
the martian terrain using Earth materials.

The rover stopped driving when its remote sensing capabilities noticed
it had not been able to make sufficient progress on a planned turn while
it was driving backward.

On a Cornell rover Web site, principal investigator Steve Squyres wrote:
"We are very optimistic that we'll be able to get out of here, but we're
really going to take our time doing it. The first rule in a situation
like this is 'do no harm,' which means that you don't rush anything.'

Erickson added "I'm optimistic we're going to be able to get out of
here. But I have a $400- million vehicle up there and I must be careful
with the taxpayers' money on this.'

He said the earliest Opportunity would be instructed to try a maneuver
that was successful in the test-bed would be Thursday for Friday
execution.
Received on Tue 03 May 2005 01:18:06 PM PDT