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February 13th, 2016
Dump pile photo from Curiosity Mars Hand Lens Imager, taken on February 12, 2016, Sol 1251.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
The Curiosity rover on Mars is deep into Sol 1252 today.
Ken Herkenhoff at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center reports that the rover’s samples of dune sand were deposited onto the surface, “but it appears that the sample was partly blown by the wind.” There is enough sample left to investigate with various rover instruments, he adds.
Looking ahead, the Curiosity Sol 1253 plan begins with Chemistry & Camera (ChemCam) passive spectra observations, as well as Mastcam multispectral observations of the dump piles and a recently brushed spot on Mars, Herkenhoff reports.
Sieved, unsieved sand
Later that sol, the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) is slated to take pictures of the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) calibration target and both dump piles prior to the APXS is placed on the pile of sieved sand for appraisal.
Curiosity Navcam Left B image, taken on Sol 1251, February 12, 2016.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
The APXS measures the abundance of chemical elements in rocks and soils.
After sunset, Herkenhoff says that the APXS will be moved to a bedrock target named “Bergsig” then to the pile of unsieved sand for a long, overnight stint of data gathering.
Surface frost
The rover is scheduled to wake up before dawn on Sol 1254 for an attempt to detect surface frost using ChemCam.
“This is the best time of year for water frost to form, so we’re hoping that ChemCam will see the hydrogen in the water,” Herkenhoff notes.
Later that sol, ChemCam and Mastcam will observe the unsieved dump pile and the brushed spot, this time using ChemCam’s laser to measure chemical composition.
“Mastcam will also image the frost target, the sun, and the distant crater rim to measure the amount of dust in the atmosphere,” says Herkenhoff. Then MAHLI will image Bersig, the sieved dump pile to look for the imprint of APXS’s contact sensor, and the brushed spot.
Curiosity ChemCam Remote Micro-Imager photo, snapped on Sol 1251, February 12, 2016.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL
Overnight, the robot’s Chemistry & Mineralogy X-Ray Diffraction/X-Ray Fluorescence Instrument (CheMin) is scheduled to analyze the dune sand again, to improve the accuracy of the mineralogical measurement.
Drive northward
On Sol 1255, Herkenhoff says that the rover planning calls for the machinery to drive toward the north, to get around the sand dune to the west of the vehicle. In addition to the usual post-drive imaging, the Navcam will take a couple images of Mount Sharp to enable planning of future long-distance imaging.
Overall, it’s another full plan for using Curiosity that has kept the tactical team busy, Herkenhoff concludes.
Posted in Space News
