[meteorite-list] Mars Rover Opportunity Update: Mar 14-19, 2015

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Fri, 22 May 2015 16:01:01 -0700 (PDT)
Message-ID: <201505222301.t4MN11o8024221_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://mars.nasa.gov/mer/mission/status.html#opportunity

OPPORTUNITY UPDATE: Rover Restored to Normal Operations After a Reset
Error - sols 4018-4023, May 14, 2015-May 19, 2015:

Opportunity is on the west rim of Endeavour Crater at the 'Spirit of St.
Louis' crater near the entrance of 'Marathon Valley.' The rover had been
exploring the outcrops inside the Spirit of St. Louis crater.

On Sol 4018 (May 14, 2015), the project attempted to restore the rover
to master sequence control after an unexplained reset on Sol 4017 (May
13, 2015). However, an operational error prevented the use of the high-gain
antenna (HGA), and the rover did not receive subsequent recovery commands.

The rover was successfully restored to normal operations on Sol 4020 (May
16, 2015). On that sol, Opportunity executed a very small turn-in-place
of only 4.6 degrees to position a surface target within reach of the robotic
arm instruments. That evening, an overnight atmospheric argon measurement
using the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) was made. Another amnesia
event occurred on the evening of Sol 4021 (May 17, 2015), but it was benign
with no loss of data. On Sol 4023 (May 19, 2015), the Rock Abrasion Tool
(RAT) was used to brush a surface target for in-situ (contact) investigation.
After the brushing, a Microscopic Imager (MI) mosaic was collected, followed
by the placement of the APXS for a multi-hour integration.

As of Sol 4023 (May 19, 2015), the solar array energy production was 536
watt-hours with an atmospheric opacity (Tau) of 1.105 and a solar array
dust factor of 0.727.

Total odometry is 26.28 miles (42.30 kilometers), more than a marathon.
Received on Fri 22 May 2015 07:01:01 PM PDT