[meteorite-list] Mars Rover Opportunity Working at Edge of 'Solander'

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Wed, 14 Aug 2013 15:59:37 -0700 (PDT)
Message-ID: <201308142259.r7EMxb0M022113_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2013-250

Mars Rover Opportunity Working at Edge of 'Solander'
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
August 14, 2013

Mars Exploration Rover Mission Status Report

PASADENA, Calif. - NASA's Mars rover Opportunity is studying the area of
contact between a rock layer formed in acidic wet conditions long ago
and an even older one that may be from a more neutral wet environment.

This geological contact line recording a change in environmental
conditions billions of years ago lies at the foot of a north-facing
slope, "Solander Point," that the rover's operators chose months ago as
Opportunity's work area for the coming Martian southern hemisphere winter.

Opportunity has survived five Martian winters since it landed on Mars in
January 2004. A northern slope would tilt the rover's solar panels
toward the winter sun, providing an important boost in available power.

Three months ago, the mission began a trek of about 1.5 miles (2.4
kilometers) from an area where Opportunity worked for nearly two years,
on "Cape York," to reach Solander Point for the winter.

"We made it," said Opportunity's project scientist, Matt Golombek of
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. "The drives went
well, and Opportunity is right next to Solander Point. We know we could
be on that north-facing slope with a one-day drive, but we don't need to
go there yet. We have time to investigate the contact between the two
geological units around the base of Solander Point. Geologists love
contacts."

Both Cape York and Solander Point are raised segments of the western rim
of Endeavour Crater, which is about 14 miles (22 kilometers) in
diameter. Between these two raised segments, the ground surface is part
of a geological unit called the Burns Formation, which also includes
virtually all the rocks Opportunity studied from its landing site in
Eagle Crater until its arrival at Cape York two years ago. The Burns
Formation includes sulfate-bearing minerals that are evidence of an
ancient environment containing sulfuric acid.

The geological contact that Opportunity is now investigating is where
Burns Formation rocks border older rocks uplifted by the impact that
formed Endeavour Crater. From observations by Mars orbiters and from
Opportunity's work on Cape York, researchers suspect these older rocks
may contain minerals that formed under wet conditions that were not as
acidic.

The rover is also observing some loose rocks that may have rolled off
Solander Point, providing a preview of what Opportunity may find after
it climbs onto that rim segment.

Based on an analysis of the amount of dust accumulated on the rover's
solar panels, the team plans to get Opportunity onto the north-facing
slope before mid-December. Daily sunshine for the rover will reach a
winter minimum in February 2014. The team expects to keep the rover
mobile through the winter. Solander Point offers rock outcrops for the
rover to continue studying through the winter months.

The twin rovers of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Project, Opportunity
and Spirit, both completed three-month prime missions in April 2004 and
began years of bonus, extended missions. Both found evidence of wet
environments on ancient Mars. Spirit ceased operations during its fourth
Martian winter, in 2010. Opportunity shows symptoms of aging, such as
loss of motion in some joints, but continues to accomplish
groundbreaking exploration and science.

JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena,
manages the Mars Exploration Rover Project for NASA's Science Mission
Directorate. For more about Spirit and Opportunity, visit
http://www.nasa.gov/rovers and http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov . You can
follow the project on Twitter and on Facebook at:
http://twitter.com/MarsRovers and http://www.facebook.com/mars.rovers .

Guy Webster 818-354-6278
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
guy.webster at jpl.nasa.gov

2013-250
Received on Wed 14 Aug 2013 06:59:37 PM PDT