[meteorite-list] Mars Exploration Rover Update - May 18, 2004

[Ron Baalke]

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/status.html

OPPORTUNITY UPDATE: A Sol for Rest and Recharging. - sol 112, 
May 18, 2004

Opportunity is healthy, but feeling a bit sluggish today. The 
rover's 40-meter (131 feet) traverse along the southern edge 
of "Endurance Crater" on sol 111, and a sol 112 error with a 
Deep Space Network command transmission have resulted in a 
low battery state of charge.

The sol 111 drive put Opportunity on an 8-degree slope that 
tilted the rover away from the Sun and limited the amount of 
direct sunlight that could reach the solar panels.

To help the battery recover to its normal state of charge, 
rover planners had built a sol 112 plan that deleted two of 
the three UHF windows. Unfortunately, a Deep Space Network 
configuration error prevented the command load from reaching 
Opportunity on sol 112 and, as expected in such cases, the 
rover executed the onboard run-out sequence, which included 
an hour of remote sensing and the three on-board UHF
communication windows.

Sol 113 will be a sol for sleep and recharging for Opportunity. 
On sol 114, the rover will do some limited remote sensing in 
the morning, but will generally take it easy over the next 
few sols in order to fully charge the batteries. The limited 
activity over the next few sols will focus on moving towards 
the Endurance Crater rim and a new position for panoramic 
camera imaging.