7 January 2016
Sol 1217: Where to sample?
On Sol 1216 Curiosity drove 43 m toward the Namib Dune sampling location. That meant that today we had to decide on our final sampling spot, and there were many different factors to consider. I was the GSTL today, and it was a busy morning trying to figure out our top science priorities. We eventually settled on a location that met all of our science objectives: a sharp-crested ripple that …
6 January 2016
Sol 1216: Looking forward to sampling and scuffing
On Sol 1215, Curiosity drove 67 m toward the Namib Dune sampling location. The desired location is visible in the middle of the above Navcam image. Today’s plan includes another drive to get into position for sampling and “scuffing” (using a rover wheel to dig a small transect in the sand). Science activities today include ChemCam and Mastcam observations to monitor the composition and opacity of the atmosphere, and a …
5 January 2016
Sol 1215: Driving to a sampling location
After wrapping up our holiday investigation on the lee side of Namib Dune, it’s time to move to a new location along the dune to sample the chemistry and mineralogy of the sand. On Sol 1214 we checked out our wheels (see the MAHLI wheel image above, with Namib Dune and Mt. Sharp in the background), and decided to go for a long drive today. The plan is drive ~ …
4 January 2016
Sol 1214: Catching up after the holidays
While the science team took a break from operations over the holidays, we sent up plenty of commands to keep Curiosity busy over Sols 1205-1213. Curiosity acquired a number of change detection and environmental monitoring observations over the holidays, and we’re just starting to assess all of the great data that was returned. In today’s plan we’ll wrap up our investigation at this particular location (on the lee side of …
23 December 2015
Sol 1202-1213: Holidays on Earth, Busy Days on Mars
Today’s plan is a four sol Holiday plan covering Sol 1202-1205, and it will be followed by some pre-planned activities to take us all the way until Sol 1214 and the new year here on Earth, so there’s a lot to talk about! On Sol 1202, we will first repeat the ChemCam RMI and Mastcam change detection images that we’ve been acquiring of the nearby dunes. Then the arm will …
22 December 2015
Sol 1201-1202: Arm Diagnostics
Based on the latest images from Navcam, Hazcam, and Mastcam it looks like at least some of the “Greenhorn” sample was dumped before the arm ran into difficulties.The plan for sol 1201 has a lot of diagnostics to help our engineers to better understand what happened with the arm. It is very likely that the arm hardware is OK, but the diagnostics will allow us to avoid this problem in …
21 December 2015
Sol 1200-1201: The Best Laid Plans
Unfortunately, over the weekend there was an issue with the rover’s arm while the “Greenhorn” sample was being dumped, which caused the rover to stop what it was doing. Because the arm ended up in an unexpected position, it prevented the APXS and MAHLI observations from occurring as planned, and it was in the way of the subsequent three ChemCam observations. The arm issues meant that today’s plan was dedicated …
19 December 2015
Sols 1198-1199: Dune imaging and dumping the “Greenhorn” sample
On Sol 1196 Curiosity drove an additional 33 m closer to the lee side of “Namib Dune.” The Mastcam images that we took earlier this week are coming down now, and they reveal a lot of great details about the dune morphology. Although today is a weekend plan, we’re only planning 2 sols because Sunday is a soliday (a day without planning to allow Earth and Mars schedules to sync …
17 December 2015
Sols 1196-1197: Aeolian paradise
On Sol 1194 Curiosity drove 47 m around the lee side of “Namib Dune.” The latest Navcam images reveal many beautiful aeolian features on the slipface and interdune deposits. In today’s 2-sol plan, we’ll continue driving around “Namib Dune.” On the first sol we’ll use ChemCam to assess the composition and grain size of a ripple. Then we’ll use Mastcam to image the brink of the dune and its slipface …
15 December 2015
Sols 1194-1195: Driving around “Namib Dune”
Over the weekend Curiosity drove 42 m closer to “Namib Dune, and the view is pretty spectacular. We’ve received a lot of beautiful Mastcam and Navcam images, which can be found here. In today’s 2-sol plan, we’ll continue driving around the “Namib Dune” to get to the lee side. It was a pretty straightforward day for me as GSTL, and Ken as the MAHLI/MARDI PUL. On the first sol Curiosity …
