Sol 45 Update on Curiosity from USGS Scientist Ken Herkenhoff: Bump Drive
21 September 2012The high-resolution color images of "Jake Matijevic" show that one face of the rock is clean (dust-free) enough for detailed study using the instruments on MSL's arm. So the Sol 45 plan includes a "bump" (short rover drive) to get close enough to reach it with the arm. We also planned ChemCam… Read More
Sol 44 Update on Curiosity from USGS Scientist Ken Herkenhoff: Everything is Jake
20 September 2012Once again, the rover planners (drivers) displayed their ability to position MSL accurately, leaving the rover right where we wanted. It looks like the rock named "Jake Matijevic" will suffice for the first examination of Mars by the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) and close-up imaging… Read More
Sol 43 Update on Curiosity from USGS Scientist Ken Herkenhoff: Transits
19 September 2012A couple of transits of Mars' moon across the face of the sun were observed by Mastcam. These are similar to solar eclipses on Earth, but because the Martian moons are so much smaller than Earth's moon, they do not completely block the sun. But they are still fun to watch and scientifically… Read More
Sol 42 Update on Curiosity from USGS Scientist Ken Herkenhoff: Active Neutron Spectrometry
18 September 2012The Sol 41 drive went well, but we are still on relatively featureless terrain. We planned another drive for Sol 42, and a huge Mastcam mosaic from the new position. It is pointed toward Glenelg and the surrounding area, and will be used to identify interesting targets for… Read More
Sol 38 Update on Curiosity from USGS Scientist Ken Herkenhoff: Glenelg Ahead
14 September 2012With the successful execution of the last of the MSL arm checkout activities, the characterization phase is complete! Many first-time activities still lie ahead (like drilling, scooping, and delivering samples to the mineralogy and organic chemistry instruments), but the major capabilities of the… Read More
Sol 41 Update on Curiosity from USGS Scientist Ken Herkenhoff: High Plateau
17 September 2012Once again the drive went well and we planned another drive on Sol 41. The terrain is relatively featureless in this area, so we are focusing imaging plans on distant targets. We are on a relatively high plateau so the views toward the rim of Gale crater are better than they were from the… Read More
Sol 40 Update on Curiosity from USGS Scientist Ken Herkenhoff: Seeking Diverse Terrain
16 September 2012Once again, the drive went well, and we are 20 meters closer to Glenelg, our near-term goal. The terrain surrounding the rover at the end of the Sol 39 drive is not as interesting as the previous location, so we didn't plan many observations besides those needed to support drive planning. … Read More
Sol 39 Update on Curiosity from USGS Scientist Ken Herkenhoff: Driving Again
15 September 2012The drive went as planned, and left MSL next to a nice outcrop During the drive the DAN instrument monitored neutrons coming up from the subsurface and noticed significant variations along the way. It's not known (at least to me) what causes these variations, but possibilities include hydrated… Read More
Sol 37 Update on Curiosity from USGS Scientist Ken Herkenhoff: Planning Under a Fake Sun
13 September 2012The ChemCam instrument was confirmed to be safe, but will not be used again until Friday to give the ChemCam team a chance to rest and regroup. The team met at the end of the planning day (7:30 PDT) to review the data received so far and to plan the next steps. By the time of this meeting I had… Read More
Sol 36 Update on Curiosity from USGS Scientist Ken Herkenhoff: Sky Flats
12 September 2012The checkout of the MSL arm continues to go well: The Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer returned its first data, of its calibration target on the side of the rover. I was busy last night planning a bunch of MAHLI images to be taken as part of the verification that the arm can be accurately… Read More
