Leonard David's INSIDE OUTER SPACE

“Old Soaker” is imaged by Curiosity’s Mastcam Right camera on Sol 1568, January 3, 2017.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now busy at work in Sol 1569 – holidays behind, scientists controlling the robot are back to daily planning.

Sol 1569 plans for the rover involve the investigation of ridge/fracture patterns at “Old Soaker,” reports Ken Herkenhoff of the USGS Astrogeology Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona.

Ridges, clouds

First, Curiosity’s Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) and Mastcam will observe the ridges at “Beech Mountain” and Navcam will search for clouds.

Curiosity Navcam Right B image taken on Sol 1569, January 4, 2017.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Then the plan tags use of the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) to take close-up images of a grey patch named “Eagle Lake” and a full suite of images of Beech Mountain.

Curiosity ChemCam Remote Micro-Imager photo acquired on Sol 1569, January 4, 2017.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL

MAHLI is also to acquire images from 25 cm and 5 cm of an area without ridge patterns dubbed “Hodgdon Pond” and another interesting feature called “Huguenot Head,” as well as a single oblique image of “Squeaker Cove” from 15 cm.

Good contact science

Herkenhoff notes that the robot’s Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) will be placed on Beech Mountain for a short integration, then on Eagle Lake for an overnight integration.

Curiosity Mastcam Left image taken on Sol 1568, January 3, 2017.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Concludes the USGS’s Herkenhoff: “Lots of good contact science to start the new year!”