At this point in the mission, the team is very good at responding to tactical surprises. Today, we did not receive the necessary downlink to proceed with the nominal plan. Fortunately, we received enough downlink to know that the last plan finished successfully and the rover is safe. All we need to do is wait for the missing data and keep going!
We have enough images to look at the terrain that is in the distance, but not enough to see what is in front of the rover right now. This means we cannot do contact science or drive, but we can take in the view with plenty of long distance images in today’s plan.
Several Mastcam mosaics are included in this two sol plan. First, Mastcam is characterizing some distant terrain at the base of Chenapau that we expect to drive to soon. There is also a Mastcam mosaic that covers Amapa from a different angle. The plan also includes the “Tupaquim” and “Uaiu” mosaics, which both target features that are exposed below the marker band. Tupaquim targets dark-toned bands, and Uaiu targets potentially wavy layers.
The two ChemCam LIBS observations occur a little closer to the rover on targets “Iracoume” and “Moreiru.” These targets are to characterize the closest bedrock that is visible in the images that were downlinked. The plan also includes two long distance RMIs: one on the flank of Chenapau and another on the marker band.
Related Links
Curiosity Mars Science Laboratory
Mars News and Information at MarsDaily.com
Lunar Dreams and more
|
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook – our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don’t have a paywall – with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution. |
||
|
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal |
 |
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only |
A New Year on Mars and a Brand-New Workspace: Sols 3702-3704
Pasadena CA (JPL) Jan 04, 2023
The team came into our first day of planning for 2023 to learn that all our holiday activities had executed as expected! As Curiosity ages, we are thankful that she continues to do amazing science on Mars, and the holiday plans were no exception. We finished up our investigations at the Marker band (for now anyway), analyzed bright material revealed in a scuff just below the Marker band and drove to the south to continue our climb of Mount Sharp.
Our view this morning revealed dusty, in place bedr … read more