Leonard David's INSIDE OUTER SPACE

Curiosity’s location on Sol 3858. Distance driven since landing in August 2012 is 18.67 miles/30.05 kilometers.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover at Gale Crater is now performing Sol 3859 tasks.

Reports Abigail Knight, a graduate student at Washington University in St. Louis: “After several attempts to drive through difficult terrain, Curiosity successfully completed a drive of about 11 meters [36 feet] on Sol 3857!”

Curiosity Left B Navigation Camera image taken on Sol 3858, June 14, 2023.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Knight said that researchers have a straightforward plan primarily focused on driving farther as well as several observations of both nearby and distant targets.

Curiosity Left B Navigation Camera image taken on Sol 3858, June 14, 2023.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Targets of interest

“After the recent drive, we have a new area to scope out targets of interest and have selected “Terebito,” which is located on a flat block of bedrock within reach of the rover’s arm,” Knight noted.

Curiosity is to first brush away the dust from Terebito with its Dust Removal Tool (DRT) before performing a quick “Touch-and-Go” observation with the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) to assess the elemental composition of the bedrock.

Laser pings seen in this Curiosity Chemistry & Camera (ChemCam) Remote Micro-Imager (RMI) photo acquired on Sol 3858, June 14, 2023.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL

In addition to APXS, Curiosity will also investigate Terebito with Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) and Mastcam in this plan.

Curiosity Chemistry & Camera (ChemCam) Remote Micro-Imager (RMI) photo acquired on Sol 3858, June 14, 2023.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL

Hard crust

A second nearby target named “Boa Esperanca” is in an area with possible “duricrust,” a hard crust of soil that forms in dry places like Mars.

The robot’s Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) and Mastcam will assess the composition of and document Boa Esperanca.

Curiosity Left B Navigation Camera image taken on Sol 3858, June 14, 2023.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

“The rover will also use Mastcam to document nearby regolith with interesting surface disruption features. Mastcam will document textures of Gediz Vallis ridge off in the distance as well as churned up terrain behind Curiosity from its previous drive attempts. This rear-view imagery will inform and support potential future drives through tricky terrain,” Knight pointed out.

Curiosity Front Hazard Avoidance Camera Left B image taken on Sol 3858, June 14, 2023.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Later on Sol 3858, Curiosity was set to drive a planned distance of about 56 feet (17 meters) and acquire the usual post-drive imagery to document its new location.

“We’re hopeful for another successful drive,” Knight concludes, and smoother sailing as Curiosity skillfully traverses the Martian terrain!”