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| Spirit's path toward Bonneville crater, superimposed on a photo taken from orbit |
"Things are going wonderfully well in imaging land," said Jim Bell, Cornell University associate professor of astronomy, and the lead scientist for the rovers' panoramic cameras, on Pancams, speaking at a press conference today at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena.
Gazing up
Bell unveiled the first sunset images sent back from Opportunity, taken by the Pancams on Martian day, or sol, 20. "Those who live in Los Angeles will recognize the sun setting into the murky, dusty atmosphere," he quipped. The imaging project, developed by Mark Lemmon, a professor at Texas A & M University, shows vertical the distribution of dust in the late summer season in Mars' southern hemisphere. Bell explained that the sun always has a blue-tinted halo around it and that during sunset, the Martian western sky is bluer.
As an astronomer-geologist, Bell reflected upon the extraordinary sunset images, saying, "You are seeing the sun setting on another planet, how often do you do that?"
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| Jim Bell, associate professor of astronomy at Cornell and leader of the Mars rover panoramic camera team, makes a point at todayÕs press briefing at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. On his right is Shane Thompson, a senior at Arizona State University who is working with the Mars mission science team. Cornell News service photo by Blaine P. FriedlanderJr.Copyright © Cornell University |
Spirit has traveled 171 meters (561 feet) since leaving its lander in Gusev crater, and currently is heading for the rim of Bonneville crater, where mission scientists and engineers estimate the rover will arrive in about two weeks.
As Spirit gets closer to the crater rim, the ejecta field of rocks, pebbles and cobbles thickens. NASA and JPL engineers are writing new software for Spirit that will boost its speed and improve its negotiation ability in this tough terrain when it operates autonomously. Jennifer Trosper, JPL mission manager for Spirit, said at today's press conference that engineers will be testing new software algorithms for the next two weeks. The software, to be uploaded by mid-March, also will correct an on/off-switching problem on Spirit.
During its journey to Bonneville's rim, the rover will look down at the Martian soil to conduct "traverse science," or examining the soil for evidence of water, according to Ray Arvidson, a professor at Washington University in St. Louis, and a deputy principal investigator on the mission.
Looking back
After Spirit's latest journey, on sol 52, a Pancam captured an image of the rover's trail, showing the road taken. From this, mission scientists and engineers were able to discern how well the autonomous driving system is working. Indeed, Spirit avoided two large boulders and the driving system seems to be working well.
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