21 March 2017
Sol 1644: Staying put
Posted by Ryan Anderson
The Sol 1644 plan for Curiosity focuses on arm activities, because the volume of data expected to be relayed via the MRO and Mars Odyssey orbiters in time for planning tomorrow is too small to allow both a drive and drill diagnostic tests. So the tactical science team took advantage of the opportunity for contact science by planning APXS and MAHLI observations of bedrock targets named “The Hop” and “The Horns.” But first, ChemCam and Right Mastcam will observe The Hop, then Right Mastcam will image the target AEGIS selected yesterday and examine rocks named “Heald Mountain,” “Caucomgomoc Lake,” and “Mooselookmeguntic Lake.” Mastcam will also search for late-morning dust devils. After the drill diagnostics and full suites of MAHLI images of The Hop and The Horns, the APXS will be placed on The Hop for an overnight integration. Early the next morning, Navcam will search for clouds and Mastcam will measure the amount of dust in the atmosphere.
Dates of planned rover activities described in these reports are subject to change due to a variety of factors related to the Martian environment, communication relays and rover status.
