[meteorite-list] Mars Exploration Rover Update - April 21, 2005

[Ron Baalke]

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

SPIRIT UPDATE: Spirit Drives to 'Methuselah' - sol 456-462, April 21, 2005

Spirit has had a great week. The rover has completed some soil studies,
taken lots of images, done a little driving, and captured a dust devil
image with its panoramic camera. Late in the week, Spirit drove over to
a piece of outcrop called "Methuselah." Spirit is healthy and doing fine!

Sol-by-sol summaries:

Sol 456 (April 15, 2005):
Spirit drove toward a soil target to perform a maneuver that engineers
and scientists call a "scuff." To scuff the soil, Spirit rotates and
backspins one of its front wheels, creating a very shallow trench.

Sol 457, 458, 459:
The scuffmark that Spirit created gave the science team a chance to do
some soil studies. Spirit used its full complement of science
instruments over the weekend (April 16 and 17, 2005) to learn about the
soil.

Sol 460:
Spirit took some additional images of the scuff with the microscopic
imager, and then drove toward a piece of outcrop in the neighborhood,
which attracted the eye of science team. The science team thinks the
outcrop is pretty old and has given it the informal name Methuselah.

Sol 461:
Using the panoramic camera, Spirit captured an image of a dust devil
passing by.

Sol 462 (April 21, 2005):
The plan is for Spirit to drive about 4 meters (13 feet) closer to
Methuselah in order to be in position for an extended imaging campaign
during the weekend.