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19 April 2016
Sol 1317: Preparing to Drill
On Sol 1316, Curiosity drove ~15 m back toward the “Lubango” target, which we first observed on Sol 1310. “Lubango” is a high silica target that sits along a fracture in the Stimson formation. The team decided to drill near this fracture to better understand both the altered and unaltered Stimson bedrock. “Lubango” is the flat block on the right side of the above Navcam image. The fracture is still …
18 April 2016
Sol 1316: Back to Lobango
All of the activities planned for last weekend completed successfully, including the full MAHLI wheel imaging and associated rover motion of just over 1 meter. The science team decided to return to the Lubango outcrop based on ChemCam results that show unusually high silica there. Therefore, the Sol 1316 plan includes a drive back toward Lubango to find good targets for drilling. Before the drive, ChemCam and Mastcam will observe …
Sols 1313-1315: Full MAHLI wheel imaging
Tactical planning was a bit hectic today as we reacted to yesterday’s change in the near-term science goals, but the team quickly determined what is feasible and put together a good plan. There are no good brushable targets in the arm workspace, so the DRT will not be used. Rather, we selected 3 targets for MAHLI imaging and APXS measurements of natural surfaces. I’m MAHLI/MARDI uplink lead today, and have …
16 April 2016
Sol 1312: The best laid plans…
The original plan for today included an ~11 m drive to get closure to a fracture in the Stimson formation. However, during science discussion, the team talked further about how to best sample both altered and unaltered Stimson bedrock, and realized that some of the best places to accomplish the proposed sampling were likely behind us! As a result of this discussion, the drive in today’s plan was pulled at …
12 April 2016
Sol 1310: Good morning Mars!
Well, that was an early morning! I was on duty as the KOP today and we started at 6:30 am, so I was up and looking at new pictures of Mars before sunrise. Normally I would not be happy about getting up so early, but I reminded myself this morning that getting to help run a nuclear-powered laser-wielding robot on Mars is worth losing a little bit of sleep every …
11 April 2016
Sol 1309: Curiosity Can’t Catch a Break
We just can’t catch a break lately! Curiosity is healthy but unfortunately the plan for the weekend was not transmitted to Mars due to a Deep Space Network outage. That means that the contact science that was planned for the weekend is lost, but the team decided that it was not important enough for us to delay driving. Today’s plan attempts to at least recover the remote sensing observations before …
10 April 2016
Sols 1307-1308: Deja vu all over again
On Sol 1305, the rover straightened its wheels in preparation for a drive, but then the fault that prevented driving earlier this week occurred again, and the vehicle did not move. The engineers are preparing to send parameter changes that will eliminate mobility actuator sensitivity to the transient power spikes. Fortunately, there are some rocks in front of the rover that are suitable for contact science, so the arm will …
30 March 2016
Sols 1298-1299: Drive cut short
The Sol 1296 drive was halted after only 4 meters of progress because the suspension on the left side of the rover was more tilted than expected. Suspension checks are routinely included in drive sequences, to keep the vehicle safe, and MSL is indeed safe. So the Sol 1298 plan includes a drive to the same location as previously planned. We were also able to squeeze in some pre-drive remote …
28 March 2016
Sols 1296-1297: Driving Across Rough Terrain
MSL drove about 17 meters on Sol 1294, continuing over rough terrain. Some of the images that have been recently received show delicate features that have apparently been formed by windblown sand abrasion. The path ahead is over more rough terrain, but it looks like we will be able to drive ~50 meters on Sol 1296. Before driving, ChemCam and Mastcam will observe bedrock targets “Bloedkoppie,” “Blaubeker” and “Blaubock,” and …
24 March 2016
Sol 1292: Gnarly terrain ahead
Data was recovered from the missing MRO pass on Sol 1290, and we confirmed that the 23 m drive went well. Today’s plan is to keep driving across the Naukluft Plateau. The terrain looks pretty rough, so we’re plotting our course carefully. Science activities in today’s plan include ChemCam and Mastcam observations to assess the local bedrock, and a Mastcam mosaic to document the sedimentary structures exposed here. The plan …
