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Spirit's Diagnostic Wheel Tests Continue
Spirit Status for sol 2096-2099: Spirit's extrication from her embedded location at Troy on the west side of Home Plate has been complicated by a recurring stall condition with the right rear wheel. After diagnostic tests on Sol 2095 (Nov. 24, 2009), indicated a freely moving wheel, another two-step drive with 5 meters (16 feet) of wheel spin was commanded on Sol 2099 (Nov. 28, 2009). That drive resulted in another right rear wheel stall after only 1.4 meters (5 feet) of wheel motion. Analysis of a right rear wheel stall back on Sol 1837 (March 25, 2009), well before embedding, suggests that the stall may not be terrain related, but could be internal to the wheel motor and gearbox. To investigate this, three sets of rotor resistance tests at cold, ambient and warm temperatures were commanded over Sols 2104 (Dec. 3, 2009), and 2105 (Dec. 4, 2009), to check the health of the motor windings and motor brushes. A small right rear wheel motion in the direction of the stall was also commanded on Sol 2104 to see if the stall persists. As of Sol 2099 (Nov. 28, 2009), the rover solar array energy production was 316 watt-hours with an atmospheric opacity (tau) of 0.572 and a dust factor of 0.567. Total odometry is 7,730.00 meters (4.80 miles). Share This Article With Planet Earth
Related Links Mars Rovers Mars News and Information at MarsDaily.com Lunar Dreams and more
Sandtrapped Rover Makes A Big DiscoveryHuntsville AL (SPX) Dec 04, 2009 Homer's Iliad tells the story of Troy, a city besieged by the Greeks in the Trojan War. Today, a lone robot sits besieged in the sands of Troy while engineers and scientists plot its escape. Welcome to "Troy" - Mars style. NASA's robotic rover Spirit is bogged down on the Red Planet in a place the rover team named after the ancient city. So why aren't scientists lamenting? "The rover's spinning wheels have broken through a crust, and we've found something supremely interesting in the disturbed soil," says Ray Arvidson of the Washington University in St. Louis. ... read more |
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