Spirit Investigates Wooly Patch

MARSDAILY

Desktop Available - 1024 only

This image from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit is a view across the outcrop informally named "Wooly Patch." It features an up-close look at the outcrop and highlights Spirit's location on sol 193 (July 19, 2004) higher up on the west side of the "Columbia Hills." Seen in the distance is the south rim of Gusev Crater, and, from the right, the "sea of basalt" is visible lapping onto the Columbia Hills.

Pasadena CA (JPL) Jul 27, 2004
On sol 194, Spirit took a large microscopic imager mosaic, consisting of 34 images at multiple positions, of a target called "Sabre" on an outcrop rock called "Wooly Patch." This was followed by a two-hour reading by the Moessbauer spectrometer and an overnight, seven-hour reading by the alpha particle X-ray spectrometer.

On sol 195, the rock abrasion tool dug a surprisingly deep hole in only two hours of grinding. The rock appears to be softer than what scientists and engineers have seen previously in Gusev Crater. The alpha particle X-ray spectrometer was placed in the rock abrasion tool hole at Sabre.

However, due to uncertainties in how long the arm and grinding operations take, the sequence was terminated a few minutes too early and a planned overnight alpha particle X-ray spectrometer integration did not take place.

Spirit recovered the alpha particle X-ray spectrometer integration in the sol 196 plan. The sol began with a microscopic imager mosaic of the rock abrasion tool hole. The alpha particle X-ray spectrometer was put back in position in the hole, and reading lasting more than six hours was successfully performed, starting at about 4 a.m. Gusev time on sol 197.

The work on Sabre was completed with a very long, 21-hour Moessbauer integration, which was expected to be completed the morning of sol 198 (July 24). Before the integration was started on sol 197, a microscopic imager mosaic was taken of "Mammoth," the next rock abrasion tool target on Wooly Patch.

Community
Email This Article
Comment On This Article

Related Links
Mars Rovers at JPL
Mars Rovers at Cornell
SpaceDaily
Search SpaceDaily
Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express
Mars News and Information at MarsDaily.com
Lunar Dreams and more

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS
Solar Energy Solutions
Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ...

Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News

MARSDAILY

Spirit Heading To 'Home Plate'

Pasadena CA (JPL) Jan 09, 2006
Last week Spirit completed robotic-arm work on "El Dorado." The rover used all three of its spectrometers plus the microscopic imager for readings over the New Year's weekend.

NUCLEAR SPACE NASA plans to send new robot to Jupiter Los Alamos Hopes To Lead New Era Of Nuclear Space Tranportion With Jovian Mission Boeing Selects Leader for Nuclear Space Systems Program Boeing-Led Team to Study Nuclear-Powered Space Systems	MOON DAILY Apollo's Lunar Leftovers New Moon Shot Not So Costly Armstrong Reflects On A New Visions For Space Exploration Sunny lunar mountain good site for base
SPACE TRAVEL X Prize Foundation Announces Teams Ready To Compete For $10 Million Getting A Run For Your Money In Space Spinning Brains Analysis: Bush Stands By His Space Plan	OUTER PLANETS SWAP To Determine Where The Sun And Ice Worlds Meet Hubble Fails To Spot Suspected Sedna Moon Life Beneath The Ice In The Outer Solar System? Gravity Rules: The Nature of Planethood
JOVIAN DREAMS Link Discovered Between Earth's Ocean Currents And Jupiter's Bands Researchers Show Io Vaporizing Rock Gases Into Atmosphere Expert Predicts Global Climate Change On Jupiter As It's Spots Disappear Europa: Living World or Frozen Wasteland?	VENUSIAN HEAT
SATURN DAILY Saturn's Rings Offer A Fresco Of Color Iapetus As Sybill Moon Cassini Exposes Saturn's Two-Face Moon Huygens In Perfect Health	TECH SPACE NSF Builds 21 Tesla Superconducting Magnet Quantum Computing, Secure Communication Closer Breakthrough Yields Simple Way To Make Microscopic Electronics Gravity Probe B mission Status Report

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement