You are browsing the archive for Curiosity.
21 October 2015
Sol 1141: Recharging batteries
There was a problem processing the latest data from MSL at the Deep Space Network station that received it, but the data are now available and confirm that the Sol 1140 activities completed successfully. As expected, the batteries need to be recharged after the SAM methane experiment, so Sol 1141 activities are limited to a few remote sensing activities. ChemCam and Mastcam will observe the Greenhorn drill tailings and another …
20 October 2015
Sol 1140: Zapping the drill hole wall
The ChemCam RMI images of the drill hole planned yesterday were successfully acquired and received, and were used today to plan 2 parallel LIBS rasters down the hole. The additional LIBS raster should be useful in measuring variations in chemistry among individual sand grains and in detecting thin veins. ChemCam and Mastcam will also observe a target dubbed “Marshall” to see whether silica enrichment extends along other fractures near the …
19 October 2015
Sol 1139: Another successful drill hole on Mars
Over the weekend Curiosity drilled another hole on Mars at the “Greenhorn” target. Everything went smoothly and we have another beautiful sample to analyze! Today’s plan is focused on transferring the sample to CheMin, followed by CheMin analysis of the drill sample. I was on duty as GSTL today, and we also planned several ChemCam and Mastcam observations of the drill hole and surrounding rocks. First we’ll acquire a ChemCam …
18 October 2015
Sols 1136-1138: Drilling at “Greenhorn”
Unfortunately the Sol 1135 bundles were not uplinked due to a DSN issue, so the activities that we planned yesterday never made it onboard. However, that meant that Curiosity spent the day resting and recharging in time for a lot of great science this weekend. Today’s 3-sol plan will recover most of the activities that were planned for Sol 1135, in addition to the main activity of a full drill …
15 October 2015
Sol 1135: Sniffing the Martian air
The Sol 1134 mini-start hole on “Pilgrim” went well, as seen in the above MAHLI image. Side note: if that doesn’t look like a hole to you, try rotating the image (the hole is illuminated from the lower left, but the human eye generally prefers to see sunlight coming from the upper half of the image). Due to power restrictions, we’re waiting until the weekend plan to go for the full …
14 October 2015
Sol 1134: Mini-start hole at “Pilgrim”
Curiosity is currently investigating an alteration zone around a fracture, and the plan today is focused on what we call a “mini-start hole.” Before we do a full drill hole, we do a small test hole to make sure its safe. The target “Pilgrim” was selected for drilling, located in the middle of this Mastcam image. Today’s plan also includes MAHLI imaging of “Pilgrim,” both before and after drilling. Then …
Sol 1133: Dump and “Thwack”
Sol 1133 activities are dominated by dumping the “Big Sky” sample and “thwacking” CHIMRA (the Collection and Handling for in-Situ Martian Rock Analysis) to clean out any remnants of the sample. We have to do this in preparation for the next drill sample, which will likely be the “Greenhorn” target in tomorrow’s plan. In addition to these arm activities, today’s plan includes several ChemCam and Mastcam observations of “Greenhorn” and …
13 October 2015
Sol 1132: Dumping Big Sky sample
Columbus Day is a federal holiday, but I’m scheduled as SOWG Chair tomorrow so I’m following Sol 1132 tactical planning and discussions of our goals for Sol 1133. The SAM analysis of the Big Sky drill sample went well and there is no need for another analysis, so the rest of the sample will be dumped out of CHIMRA on Sol 1132. MAHLI will take pictures of the dump target …
10 October 2015
Sol 1128: Twenty Minutes to Mars
I got up before dawn again today, and was treated to a beautiful view of the crescent Moon, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter in the eastern sky. I hadn’t seen Mars since it emerged from behind the Sun following solar conjunction last June (it was cloudy yesterday morning), and its dimness reminded me of how far away Mars is right now: 351 million kilometers or 218 million miles. It takes 20 …
9 October 2015
Sols 1129-1131: Assessing “Greenhorn”
Curiosity is currently investigating an alteration zone around a fracture. After a successful drilling investigation at “Big Sky,” Curiosity is now ready to evaluate the alteration zone at “Greenhorn” for comparison. The weekend plan is a busy one. The first sol is focused on SAM activities, to prepare a cup to receive the “Big Sky” drill sample, and then to drop off the sample. On the second sol Curiosity will …
