Sol 1325: Taking it Easy
27 April 2016It’s been a busy few days of drilling and related activities, so the plan for sol 1325 is a pretty simple one to allow the rover’s batteries to recharge. There is a short science block with a ChemCam observation of the drill tailings at “Lubango” along with Mastcam… Read More
Sol 1324: Power-constrained
26 April 2016As expected, the Sol 1323 data we needed for planning today were received later than usual, so tactical planning started 3 hours later than normal. This makes for a long day, especially for the European members of the MSL operations team. But the real challenge today is power--the… Read More
Sol 1323: A new drill hole
25 April 2016So far, all of the activities planned for last weekend have completed successfully, and we have a new drill hole on Mars! The Sol 1323 plan is therefore to continue the Lubango drill campaign, transferring the sample to CHIMRA, sieving it, and delivering some of the <0.15 mm fraction… Read More
Sols 1320-1322: Drilling at Lubango
22 April 2016The contact science activities on Sol 1319 went well, and we analyzed another DRT location with MAHLI and APXS. The drill pre-load test suggested that the Lubango block might have moved slightly, but the RPs feel comfortable to go ahead and drill in the weekend plan. I was on duty as GSTL… Read More
Ten New THEMIS Geodetically Controlled Mosaics Available from the USGS
22 April 2016THEMIS infrared geodetically controlled mosaics, updated spacecraft pointing and orientation information (i.e., preliminary smithed SPICE kernels), and supporting documentation are available for download and public use from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Astrogeology Science Center.… Read More
Sol 1318: DRT at Lubango
20 April 2016The bump on Sol 1317 went well, and we’re ready to start our drilling campaign at the “Lubango” fracture zone. After a lot of discussion this morning, the plan evolved to include contact science at three targets near “Lubango.” First we’ll use the DRT… Read More
Sol 1317: Preparing to Drill
19 April 2016On Sol 1316, Curiosity drove ~15 m back toward the “Lubango” target, which we first observed on Sol 1310. “Lubango” is a high silica target that sits along a fracture in the Stimson formation. The team decided to drill near this fracture to better… Read More
Name Approved for Crater on Mars: Selevac
19 April 2016The IAU Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature has approved the name Selevac for a small crater on Mars. For more information, see the map for MC-24 in the Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature.
Announcement: Planetary Geologic Mappers Meeting 2016
19 April 2016Dear Planetary Geologic Mappers,Announcing, registration and abstract submissions are now open for the 2016 Planetary Geologic Mappers’ Meeting, to be held at the USGS in Flagstaff, Arizona, June 13-15.The website is: http://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/pgm2016. You can register and… Read More
Sol 1316: Back to Lobango
18 April 2016All of the activities planned for last weekend completed successfully, including the full MAHLI wheel imaging and associated rover motion of just over 1 meter. The science team decided to return to the Lubango outcrop based on ChemCam results that show unusually high silica there. … Read More
