[meteorite-list] Mars Rover Opportunity Update: September 20-26, 2016

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Fri, 30 Sep 2016 14:58:16 -0700 (PDT)
Message-ID: <201609302158.u8ULwGjt005206_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

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

OPPORTUNITY UPDATE: Busy Week of Science and Imaging for Opportunity
- sols 4500 - 4506, September 20, 2016-September 26, 2016:

Since leaving the "Lewis and Clark Gap" of Marathon Valley, Opportunity
has been driving through "Bitterroot valley" toward her first waypoint
of the new extended mission, "Spirit Mound."

With the Sol 4500 (Sept. 20, 2016) drive, she arrived at the base of the
mound. The rover then bumped to a parking position for imaging and access
to possible surface targets on Sol 4502 (Sept. 22, 2016). Finally, on
Sol 4505 (Sept. 25, 2016), Opportunity bumped to "Gasconade," a thin,
bright and linear outcrop, another possible surface target. The Sol 4500
uplink had to be shortened to avoid an X-band fault due to a very late
X-band pass and Earth set below the highly tilted rover deck. A Quick
Fine Attitude (QFA) was also done on Sol 4500.

Panoramic Camera (Pancam) images of Spirit Mound and a Navigation Camera
(Navcam) panorama were done on Sol 4501 (Sept. 21, 2016), with dust devil
monitoring the following morning. On Sol 4502 (Sept. 22, 2016) Pancam
images of nearby boulders were taken before the drive and a post-drive
Pancam mosaic of Spirit Mound was taken afterwards. Opportunity took more
color Pancam images of Spirit Mound, performed a Pancam low sun survey,
and took Microscopic Imager (MI) sky flats on Sol 4503 (Sept. 23, 2016),
with a Pancam horizon survey the following morning.

On Sol 4504 (Sept. 24, 2016), Opportunity took a 13-filter Pancam image
of "Council Bluffs", a section of the ridge south of Gasconade, and Gasconade
itself, followed by a Pancam 4x1 context panorama of the ridgeline including
Council Bluffs. On Sol 4506 (Sept. 26, 2016), Opportunity collected a
Navcam image of her tracks, took a Pancam image of "Portland," a breccia
target, and a Pancam mosaic of the top of Spirit Mound above Gasconade.

As of Sol 4506 (Sept. 26, 2016), the solar array energy production is
474 watt-hours with an elevated atmospheric opacity (Tau) of 0.892 and
a solar array dust factor of 0.701.

Total odometry as of Sol 4505 (Sept. 25, 2016) is 26.99 miles (43.44 kilometers).
Received on Fri 30 Sep 2016 05:58:16 PM PDT