Space Travel News  
MARSDAILY
Opportunity Continues Its Journey South Along Crater Rim
by Staff Writers
Pasadena CA (JPL) Jan 18, 2017


File image.

Opportunity is located on the rim of Endeavour Crater, heading south along the rim.

The near-term plan is to reach a valley called 'Willamette' where grooves are seen in orbital imagery. The rover had recently disturbed the surface soil during a challenging uphill drive and revealed some interesting bright material.

The science team saw this as an opportunity to conduct some long overdue in-situ (contact) analysis.

So, on Sol 4603 (Jan. 4, 2017), Opportunity began using the robotic arm to investigate the exposed material, first with the Microscopic Imager (MI) to collect a mosaic of the surface and then placing the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) on the ground for a multi-hour integration.

On Sol 4605 (Jan. 6, 2017), an offset surface target was selected, again for a MI mosaic and offset APXS placement. During these sols, remote sensing imagery with the Panoramic Camera (Pancam) and Navigation Camera (Navcam) cameras was also collected.

On Sol 4607 (Jan. 8, 2017), it became time to get on the road again. Opportunity drove about 41 feet (12.6 meter) to the northeast to get around some troubling terrain.

Then on Sol 4609 (Jan. 10, 2017), the rover headed roughly west in a two-segment drive, totaling over 82 feet (25 meters).

As of Sol 4609 (Jan. 10, 2017), the solar array energy production was 463 watt-hours with an atmospheric opacity (Tau) of 0.724 and a solar array dust factor of 0.671.

Total odometry is 27.20 miles (43.77 kilometers).


Comment on this article using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
Opportunity Status Report Archive
Mars News and Information at MarsDaily.com
Lunar Dreams and more






Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

Previous Report
MARSDAILY
New Year yields interesting bright soil for Opportunity rover
Pasadena CA (JPL) Jan 09, 2017
Opportunity is located on the rim of Endeavour crater, heading south along the rim. The near-term plan is to reach a valley called "Willamette" where grooves are seen in orbital imagery. Just before the holidays, the rover encountered some difficult, steep terrain. As the rover tried to advance up 20-degree slopes, the wheels began to dig up the soil and progress slowed to a near stop. ... read more


MARSDAILY
Russia to face strong competition from China in space launch market

Vega And Gokturk-1A are present for next Arianespace lightweight mission

Antares Rides Again

Four Galileo satellites are "topped off" for Arianespace's milestone Ariane 5 launch from the Spaceport

MARSDAILY
HI-SEAS Mission V crew preparing to enter Mars simulation habitat

New Year yields interesting bright soil for Opportunity rover

Hues in a Crater Slope

3-D images reveal features of Martian polar ice caps

MARSDAILY
The moon is older than scientists thought

Eugene Cernan, last man to walk on moon, dead at 82

How the Moons That Came Before Collided to Form the Moon

New map of the Moon under creation in China

MARSDAILY
How a moon slows the decay of Pluto's atmosphere

Lowell Observatory to renovate Pluto discovery telescope

Flying observatory makes observations of Jupiter previously only possible from space

York U research identifies icy ridges on Pluto

MARSDAILY
Looking for life in all the right places with the right tool

VLT to Search for Planets in Alpha Centauri System

Could dark streaks in Venusian clouds be microbial life

Hubble detects 'exocomets' taking the plunge into a young star

MARSDAILY
Next Cygnus Mission to Station Set for March

ISRO set to increase vehicle capacity to accommodate more space launches

SpaceX launches, lands rocket for first time since Sept blast

Michoud complete stand for testing SLS main fuel tank

MARSDAILY
China launches commercial rocket mission Kuaizhou-1A

China Space Plan to Develop "Strength and Size"

Beijing's space program soars in 2016

China Plans to Launch 1st Mars Probe by 2020 - State Council Information Office

MARSDAILY
How the darkness and the cold killed the dinosaurs

NASA's Newly Announced Mission Could Solve the Mystery of Water on Asteroid Psyche

Asteroid sleuths go back to the future

Asteroid buzzes Earth









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.