NASA Mars Curiosity Status: Approach to Ripple

October 3, 2012

On Sol 56 (Oct. 2, 2012), Curiosity drove about 20 feet (6 meters) westward to reach a ripple of sand and dust deposited by the wind at a soil patch called “Rocknest.” This site is a potential target for the rover’s first use of its scoop, which the team will be evaluating over the next few days.

Activities on Sol 56 also included monitoring the environment around Curiosity with the Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD), the Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons (DAN) instrument, and the Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS). A raw image from Curiosity’s front Hazard Avoidance Camera (Hazcam) after the Sol 56 drive, showing a ripple at Rocknest, is at http://1.usa.gov/PstZsE .

Sol 56, in Mars local mean solar time at Gale Crater, ended at 8:26 p.m. Oct. 2, PDT (11:26 p.m. EDT).