NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover has just begun Sol 2727 operations.
“Curiosity is still at the Edinburgh drill site as part of a mini campaign to sample the Greenheugh pediment,” reports Lauren Edgar, a planetary geologist at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona.
“We’re finishing drill-related analyses and activities, and the three-sol weekend plan is focused on dumping sample from the drill bit assembly and documenting the dump pile and drill tailings,” Edgar explains.
Extra data points
There was a “busy but fun day” of remote operations. The plan includes Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) observation of the Edinburgh drill hole to get some extra data points to characterize the drill site, as well as the “Calders Sandstone” bedrock target, and Mastcam documentation.
Edgar adds that Curiosity is to dump the sample and document the pile with Mastcam and the robot’s Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), followed by the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS).
Twilight viewing
Also within the planning, Edgar points out, is having the rover pause to take in the view at twilight – including a Navcam image of the horizon in which Earth and Venus should be visible! That’s followed by an overnight APXS integration on the dump pile.
ChemCam is on tap to take long distance a Remote Micro Imager (RMI) telescope mosaic of the pediment capping unit to assess the stratigraphy and sedimentary structures exposed on the flank of Gediz Vallis.
Additional ChemCam RMI mosaics are also tap, followed by a Mastcam multispectral observation of the dump pile, and Mastcam documentation of some interesting dark layers in the mound stratigraphy.
Atmospheric activity
“Throughout the plan there are also a number of the Mastcam and Navcam observations to complete a photometry experiment. The rover will also continue to monitor atmospheric activity with a Navcam line of sight observation, dust devil survey, and Mastcam tau observation, and a whole suite of activities early on the morning of Sol 2727,” Edgar adds.
“While everyone is staying safe at home,” Edgar concludes, “it’s especially nice to hear so many voices from our team members and to look forward to exciting new data from Mars!”