Spirit: Illumination experiment and other studies; Opportunity: Meeting a meteorite

With the surplus of power, Spirit continues to perform science observations at a variety of times. This includes an illumination experiment, which consists of a set of navigation camera observations acquired at different times of day to help examine texture in the terrain. The resulting information could aid future driving.

On Earth, the surface system testbed (SSTB) rover extraction testing continues with end-to-end testing in differentiated soil in preparation to the first extraction moves on Mars.

As of Sol 1988 (Aug. 6, 2009), Spirit's solar array energy production is 907 watt-hours with atmospheric opacity (tau) of 0.330 and dust factor of 0.821 on the solar array. Total odometry remains at 7,729.93 meters (4.80 miles).

Panelists in a video conference on Aug. 7, 2009, reviewed results to date from testing possible maneuvers to use in driving NASA's Mars Rover Spirit away from loose soil where the rover has become embedded. Further testing at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, is planned before commanding Spirit to begin moving from its current location. In this image from the review session, JPL engineers Frank Hartman and Jacob Matijevic view a projected map of Spirit's location, informally named "Troy," and nearby features on Mars. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Opportunity has arrived at the large cobble called "Block Island," which is about two-thirds of a meter (2 feet) across. A 1.5-meter (5-foot) bump on Sol 1961 (July 31, 2009) put the rock in the work volume of the robotic arm (instrument deployment device, or IDD).

From Sols 1963 to 1967 (Aug. 1 to Aug. 5, 2009), Opportunity studied a series of surface targets on Block Island using the instruments on the IDD. Resulting data confirmed that the rock is an iron-nickel meteorite.

The shroud of the miniature thermal emission spectrometer (Mini-TES) continues to be left open on scheduled sols to allow the environment to clean putative dust contamination from the elevation mirror. No improvement in Mini-TES performance has been observed so far, but the rover has seen no wind events.

As of Sol 1967 (Aug. 5, 2009), Opportunity's solar-array energy production is 491 watt-hours with an atmospheric opacity (tau) of 0.547 and a solar-array dust factor of 0.586. The rover's total odometry is 17,226.29 meters (10.70 miles).

Source: Jet Propulsion Laboratory
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