Leonard David's INSIDE OUTER SPACE

Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) photo of a small part of the Toron block in front of the rover. MAHLI is located on the turret at the end of the rover’s robotic arm. Photo produced on February 2, 2022, Sol 3374.
Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS.

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover at Gale Crater is now performing Sol 3376 duties.

Scientists continue to marvel at the Toron chunk of bedrock, reports Susanne Schwenzer, a planetary geologist at The Open University, Milton Keynes, United Kingdom. “We arrived here two sols ago and didn’t drive away just yet to get some second servings.”

Curiosity Mars Hand Lens Imager photo produced on Sol 3375, February 2, 2022.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

There was another sol to add rover investigations on this block and in the area.

Awesome details

In detail, the robot’s Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) is looking at the target “Apocaila” to document the most common rock in the area, and the one which the  rover is currently parked upon. 

Curiosity Chemistry & Camera Remote Micro-Imager (RMI) photo acquired on Sol 3375, February 2, 2022.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL

This so-called bedrock is also the target of Mastcam, with a large mosaic to be taken starboard of Curiosity.

ChemCam is also turning its attention back to the Toron block for the second servings investigating the target “Paure,” which is on a different part of the Toron block from what was recently imaged, so the plan calls for one more set of Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) photos of all those awesome details, Schwenzer adds.

Curiosity Mast Camera Right imagery mosaic, taken on Sol 3374, February 1, 2022.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Intriguing structures

Looking slightly further afield, ChemCam will get an Remote Micro-Imager (RMI) mosaic on the target Paure to “document even more of all those fascinating sedimentary structures,” Schwenzer explains.

Curiosity Mast Camera Right imagery mosaic, taken on Sol 3374, February 1, 2022.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

“Even further afield the landscape looks equally exciting, and therefore ChemCam has a long distance RMI in the plan to get images from an area in the distance to get a closer look at some intriguing structures that look like thicker bedding or maybe something else,” Schwenzer points out. “That’s for the new images to reveal as the ones we have do not quite have the resolution to make that decision. But that’s what long distance RMIs are for!”

Curiosity Right B Navigation Camera image taken on Sol 3375, February 2, 2022.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

New parking position

Schwenzer  says that the rover is going to drive, and after that the standard set of navigation camera images will help the next planning and of course they are also the first ones to reveal science details of the new parking position.

ChemCam will add an AEGIS observation. AEGIS stands for Autonomous Exploration for Gathering Increased Science) – a software suite that permits the rover to autonomously detect and prioritize targets.

“Throughout the plan there are observations of the atmospheric conditions, too, Schwenzer  concludes. “It’s a busy two sols (Sols 3376-3377) for Curiosity!”