[meteorite-list] Mars Exploration Rovers Update - July 29, 2006

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Sun Jul 30 22:10:11 2006
Message-ID: <200607310207.TAA02263_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/status.html

SPIRIT UPDATE: NASA's Spirit Rover Survives Record Cold on Mars -
sol 908-914, July 29, 2006:

Spirit remains healthy and continues to make progress on computer
upgrades and scientific research, despite winter temperatures colder
than any yet experienced during the rover's two and a half years on
Mars. Models show that at the coldest part of the Martian night, around
5:00 a.m. Mars time, temperatures near the surface have dipped to
approximately minus 97 degrees Celsius (minus 143 degrees Fahrenheit).

With the deepest part of the Martian winter just around the corner,
Spirit is collecting about 284 watt-hours of electrical power each sol
from the rover's solar array (a hundred watt-hours is the amount of
electricity needed to light one 100-watt bulb for one hour). The
shortest day, winter solstice in Mars' southern hemisphere, will arrive
on Aug. 8, 2006. The lowest amount of solar energy the rover is expected
to receive is about 275 watt-hours per sol.

Spirit has put the finishing touches on a new version of its flight
software -- assembling, checking, and saving 200 sections of computer
code transmitted from Earth in recent weeks. The software upgrade will
give the rover enhanced autonomous operational capabilities. NASA plans
for Spirit to switch from its current flight software to the new version
in coming weeks.

Meanwhile, Spirit is only one frame away from completing the
long-anticipated "McMurdo panorama," a full-color, 360-degree view of
the rover's winter haven amid the "Columbia Hills" in Gusev Crater on
Mars. The collection of images from the panoramic camera, as with all
scientific data, has taken extra time to complete with the sun lower on
the horizon and solar power levels on the wane. During the week, Spirit
also used the microscopic imager to get a closer look at a small ripple
nicknamed "Palmer."

For the next several weeks until Labor Day, Spirit will communicate with
Earth only using UHF-band relay via NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter. The
X-band Spirit uses for communicating directly with Earth will not be
available while that frequency is used intensively by NASA's Mars
Reconnaissance Orbiter in the final stages of trimming its orbit around
Mars.

Sol-by-sol summary:

Sol 908 (July 23, 2006): Spirit took microscopic images of Palmer.

Sol 909: Spirit continued work on the McMurdo panorama and used its
miniature thermal emission spectrometer to study a rock target known as
"Korolev2."

Sol 910: Spirit continued work on the McMurdo panorama and cleaned and
calibrated the rock abrasion tool.

Sol 911: Spirit continued work on the McMurdo panorama and gathered
remote-sensing information about a target known as "Druzhnaya."

Sol 912: Spirit continued work on the McMurdo panorama.

Sol 913: Spirit took microscopic images of a target known as "Palmer2."

Sol 914 (June 29, 2006): Plans call for Spirit to continue work on the
McMurdo panorama.

Odometry

As of sol 911 (July 26, 2006), Spirit's total odometry remained at
6,876.18 meters (4.27 miles).

------------------------------------------------------------------------

OPPORTUNITY UPDATE: Cleaning Event Gives Opportunity Renewed Energy -
sol 886-892, July 29, 2006:

Opportunity spent five sols this week at a target called "Joseph McCoy."
At this location, the rover acquired about 41 hours of Moessbauer
spectrometer integration, almost seven hours of alpha particle X-ray
spectrometer integration, and a mosaic from the microscopic imager. Then
Opportunity rolled back, scuffed the soil, and drove 55 meters (180
feet) closer to "Beagle Crater." The scuff helps scientists and
engineers analyze how the wheels interact with the soil. After the most
recent drive, Opportunity is sitting about 25 meters (82 feet) from the
rim of Beagle Crater.

Over the past 50 sols the team noticed a gradual cleaning of the solar
panels similar to a more-sudden cleaning event experienced one Mars-year
ago in "Endurance Crater." Removal of some of the accumulated dust on
the panels allows greater production of electricity from sunlight.
Opportunity's solar panels are now producing just over 500 watt-hours
per sol.

Sol-by-sol summaries:

Sol 886 (June 22, 2006): Opportunity took microscopic images and an
alpha particle X-ray spectrometer reading of the target Joseph McCoy.
During the afternoon communication-relay session with NASA's Mars
Odyssey orbiter, the rover observed the sky and ground with the
miniature thermal emission spectrometer to profile temperatures of the
atmosphere and surface. This sol also included a 13-filter panoramic
image of a feature called "Jesse Chisholm" and an abbreviated morning
observation of the sky and ground with the miniature thermal emission
spectrometer.

Sol 887: Opportunity took a Moessbauer reading of Joseph McCoy and a
panoramic camera image of "Sand Sheet" (shot to the south to determine a
path to Beagle). In the morning, the rover looked for clouds and made
atmospheric measurements.

Sol 888: Opportunity continued the Moessbauer examination of Joseph McCoy
and conducted a miniature thermal emission spectrometer stare at Jesse
Chisholm. The rover checked for clouds and assessed a temperature
profile of the atmosphere.

Sol 889: The rover restarted the Moessbauer spectrometer, used the
miniature thermal emission spectrometer for a seven-point sky and ground
observation, and checked for clouds with the navigation camera.

Sol 890: Opportunity restarted the Moessbauer spectrometer and did two
stares at soil with the miniature thermal emission spectrometer. The
rover then stopped the Moessbauer observation and changed tools to the
alpha particle X-ray spectrometer before the Odyssey pass. The rover
began collecting X-ray spectrometer data on a target called "Ignatius."

Sol 891: Opportunity rolled back 1.5 meters (5 feet) and scuffed soil
with its left-front wheel. The rover then conducted mid-drive imaging,
completing a 13-filter panoramic camera image of the robotic arm's work
area and the scuff. The rover drove 55 meters (180 feet) towards Beagle
Crater. Post-drive imaging included a panoramic camera mosaic and
navigation camera image mosaics in the forward and rear directions.

Sol 892 (July 28, 2006): Plans call for Opportunity to aim the
navigation camera in the direction of the calibration target and take
pictures of the sky, checking for clouds. Also, the rover is to use the
miniature thermal emission spectrometer to profile near-surface and
atmospheric temperatures.

Opportunity's total odometry as of sol 892 is 8,660.44 meters (5.38 miles).
Received on Sun 30 Jul 2006 10:07:34 PM PDT