[meteorite-list] Mars Exploration Rover Update - January 18, 2005

[Ron Baalke]

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

SPIRIT UPDATE: Spirit at 'Arad' - sol 715-722, Jan 18, 2006:

Spirit is healthy and is driving as efficiently as possible toward "Home Plate." 
On the way to Home Plate, Spirit stopped to look at "Arad," where scientists 
encountered a cluster of white, powdery soil. Researchers decided to stop for a 
few days and use the robotic arm to conduct some measurements on it. Results are 
expected soon.

Sol-by-sol summaries:

Sol 715 (Jan. 6, 2006): Spirit performed untargeted remote sensing.

Sol 716: Spirit drove 54 meters (177 feet), using a combination of commanded and 
autonomous navigation.

Sol 717: Spirit drove only 1.38 meters (4.5 feet) on slippery terrain, experiencing 
slippage of 80 percent as the wheels were turning.

Sol 718: Spirit conducted untargeted remote sensing.

Sol 719: Spirit drove 9.3 meters (30.5 feet). The rover stopped when the slip rate 
of its wheels exceeded 80 percent in an area of sandy, unfamiliar terrain.

Sol 720: Spirit conducted untargeted remote sensing and atmospheric studies.

Sol 721: Spirit adjusted position to place the robotic arm next to Arad for a 
weekend of scientific measurements. The rover also used its panoramic camera and 
miniature thermal emission spectrometer to take images of targets called "Arad1" 
and "Arad2."

Sol 722: Spirit conducted untargeted remote sensing and took panoramic camera 
images of tracks created by the rover's wheels.

As of sol 722 (Jan. 14, 2006), Spirit's total odometry was 6,096 meters 
(3.79 miles).