NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover has entered Sol 2643 and is performing planned science tasks.
“Curiosity is still on the shoulder of Western Butte at a location that provides a good vantage point, exposes changes in stratigraphy, and reveals some interesting float blocks in our workspace,” reports Lauren Edgar, a planetary geologist at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona.
Fresh surface
Last Wednesday (planning Sols 2640-2641) researchers were able to conduct contact science on a bedrock target named “Buchan Haven,” a target where the rover’s Dust Removal Tool (DRT) cleared away a fresh surface.
A recent plan kicked off with several Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) observations to assess the chemistry of a nodule target “Strathy Point,” a vein target “Abernethy,” and bedrock target “Glen Clunie,” along with Mastcam documentation of these rocks.
Then the robot’s Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) and Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) was slated to characterize the grain size, sedimentary structures, and chemistry of “Lomond Hills” (a dark float block that might represent the butte capping unit), and “Abernethy” (an interesting vein).
Light-toned vein
Edgar adds that the second sol included additional remote sensing, with several long distance Remote Micro-Imaging (RMI) camera mosaics to assess the stratigraphy of the pediment and Gediz Vallis ridge, and a Mastcam multispectral observation of a light-toned vein at “Hascosay.”
The Environmental theme group planned a number of atmospheric monitoring observations, including a Mastcam tau, crater rim extinction, Navcam line of sight, and dust devil and suprahorizon movies.
Methane observation slated
Then Curiosity was scheduled to drive roughly 148 feet (45 meters) to the northeast, down the eastern slope of the butte. After the drive the rover was set to acquire imaging to help with context and targeting for next week.
On the morning of Sol 2644, Curiosity will acquire additional environmental monitoring observations, Edgar notes, and then run a Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) Instrument Suite atmospheric methane observation.
Dates of planned rover activities described in these reports are subject to change due to a variety of factors related to the Martian environment, communication relays and rover status.