APOD: The Last Panorama of Spirit on Mars (2011 May 30)

[Beyond]

Ya know why Robbie disapproves? Because afterwards, he got Lost in Space.

[Star*Hopper]

Ya know why Robbie disapproves? Because afterwards, he got Lost in Space.

Click to play embedded YouTube video.

[neufer]

The Last Panorama of the Spirit Rover on Mars

Last week, NASA stopped trying to contact Spirit after numerous attempts. Half a world away, Spirit's sister rover Opportunity continues to roll toward Endeavour Crater, which could become the largest crater yet visited by an earthling-created robot.

[b][color=#FF0000]Endeavour, an impact crater located in Meridiani Planum, is [u]22 kilometers[/u] in diameter.[/color][/b] Craters that have been explored by Opportunity include Victoria crater which is 750 meters in diameter, Endurance crater which is 130 meters in diameter, and Eagle crater which is 22 meters in diameter. Both Spirit and Opportunity have pieces of the fallen World Trade Center's metal on them which were 'turned into shields to protect cables on the drilling mechanisms'.

---

[b][color=#0000FF]Spirit was targeted to a site that appears to have been affected by liquid water in the past, the [u]166 kilometer[/u] crater Gusev, a possible former lake in a giant impact crater.[/color][/b]

---

<<Matvey Matveyevich Gusev (Матве́й Матве́евич Гу́сев) (November 28 1826 in Vyatka, Russia–April 22 1866 in Berlin, Germany) was a Russian astronomer who worked at Pulkovo Observatory near St. Petersburg from 1850 to 1852 and then at Vilnius Observatory (which he established at the University of Vilnius) thereafter. In 1860 he founded the first scientific journal dedicated to math and physics in Russia (Вестник математических наук). He was first to prove the non-sphericity of the Moon, concluding in 1860 that it is elongated in the direction of the Earth. He is considered one of the pioneers in using photography in astronomy, having taken pictures of the moon and the sun - including sunspots - while at the Vilnius observatory. He died in Berlin, Germany in 1866. A major crater on Mars is named Gusev crater after him, and it is famed as the landing site of the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit.

Gusev crater is about 166 kilometers in diameter and formed approximately three to four billion years ago. A channel system named Ma'adim Vallis drains into it that probably carried liquid water, or water and ice, at some point in Mars' past. The crater appears to be an old crater lake bed, filled with sediments up to 3000 feet thick. Some exposed outcrops appear to show faint layering, and some researchers also believe that landforms visible in images of the mouth of Ma'adim Vallis where it enters Gusev resemble landforms seen in some terrestrial river deltas. Deltas of this nature can take tens or hundreds of thousands of years to form on Earth, suggesting that the water flows may have lasted for long periods. Orbital images indicate that there may once have been a very large lake near the source of Ma'adim Vallis that could have provided the source of this water. It is not known whether this flow was slow and continuous, punctuated by sporadic large outbursts, or some combination of these patterns.

On January 3, 2004, Gusev was the landing site of the first rover in NASA's two Mars Exploration Rovers, named Spirit. It is hoped that the numerous smaller and more recent craters in this region will have exposed sedimentary material from early eras, although at first the region proved disappointing in its lack of available bedrock for study on the flat lava plains of the crater, Spirit's landing site. She eventually arrived at the Columbia Hills, however, and rocks examined in that region show that the Columbia Hills did have small amounts of briny (salty) water interacting with them in ancient times, though nowhere near as much as Meridiani Planum, the landing area for Spirit's twin, Opportunity.>>

[NoelC]

Perhaps a future rover needs an arm that can do double duty as a "sand hazard extraction aid".

-Noel

[BMAONE23]

Perhaps a future rover needs an arm that can do double duty as a "sand hazard extraction aid".

-Noel

Or perhaps some hydraulic jacks like the Mark V (only a little slower on the uptake)

[Star*Hopper]

While I marveled at the engineering invested in Spirit & Opportunity, one thing I thought conspicuously absent was a means of cleaning dust off the solar panels, particularly since they fully expected that to be an operational hazard, possibly even eventually fatal to their survival. In my mind, a compressed air tank - maybe even an onboard compressor to replenish it, wouldn't have been that difficult to include. I've often wondered about that lacking.

Meanwhile, I've been a bit surprised the next generation rover (officially, "Mars Science Laboratory" or 'MSL') hasn't been mentioned here - at least, anywhere i've seen. It's now been nicknamed - 'Curiosity' - and upon seeing its image for the first time I was greatly relieved to see it doesn't in the slightest resemble a cat.

The 'anti-stuck' strategy is apparently to go bigger - roughly twice the size of Spirit & Opp'ys wheels:

Comparison of Sojourner, Spirit, Curiosity wheels

---

Curiosity will land on its own wheels (a first) - and "has been outfitted with a new cutting-edge mobility system that's enough to make off-road enthusiasts drool with envy. The rover, which will carry ten times the payload mass of Spirit and Opportunity, is about the size of an SUV, and too heavy for an airbag landing.

It has a set of six wheels that are 20 inches in diameter -- larger than a car tire. Each wheel has its own motor, giving the rover independent six-wheel drive, and "cleats" that provide grip and help keep the rover from slipping when climbing over rocks or sand hills. The rover can also do swerving maneuvers and turn in place a full 360 degrees."

Scheduled for launch late November of this year, latest info I have says they still haven't decided on a landing site....a while back I saw something about a contest going on for suggestions, & same latest says they have narrowed it down to 4 candidate sites. For those curious, here's an overview of how it'll be equipped, etc.: Five Things About NASA's Mars Curiosity Rover

Annnnd...didn't realize while composing the above, there's a Wiki page up that tells lots more: Wikipedia: Mars Science Lab

~S*H

[rstevenson]

While I marveled at the engineering invested in Spirit & Opportunity, one thing I thought conspicuously absent was a means of cleaning dust off the solar panels, particularly since they fully expected that to be an operational hazard, possibly even eventually fatal to their survival. In my mind, a compressed air tank - maybe even an onboard compressor to replenish it, wouldn't have been that difficult to include. I've often wondered about that lacking.

Me too. I can't imagine why they didn't at least make it possible to tilt the panels to a much more favourable angle. Well, yes, I can imagine - weight and complexity. And the rovers were only expected to have a three month life, so the need for better solar panel angles just wasn't taken seriously I guess.

Meanwhile, I've been a bit surprised the next generation rover (officially, "Mars Science Laboratory" or 'MSL') hasn't been mentioned here - at least, anywhere i've seen.

The thread you seek is here.

Rob

[BMAONE23]

I thought the same thing about the panels, they need a brush for the panels and a wiper for the lenses

[neufer]

While I marveled at the engineering invested in Spirit & Opportunity, one thing I thought conspicuously absent was a means of cleaning dust off the solar panels, particularly since they fully expected that to be an operational hazard, possibly even eventually fatal to their survival. In my mind, a compressed air tank - maybe even an onboard compressor to replenish it, wouldn't have been that difficult to include. I've often wondered about that lacking.

I thought the same thing about the panels, they need a brush for the panels and a wiper for the lenses

Three ladies from somewhere up North stopped at a small rural Oklahoma store which sold gas.

Being on empty, they got the tank filled, checked the oil and tires and had the windshield cleaned.

Then one of the ladies ask the attendant if he had a restroom.

The man (spying their dirty car) thought that she had asked for a "wisk broom" and replied,
"no ma'm, but if you back it up over here I could blow it out with the air hose."