NASA Mars Exploration Rover Spirit Status 18 December 2006
SPIRIT UPDATE: Relay Link Restored After Orbiter’s Recovery –
sol 1043-1050, December 18, 2006: After Spirit drove on sol 1041 (Dec. 7, 2006), NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter went into safe mode before the rover’s could relay data to Earth about results of the drive. (Safe mode is a protective state during which only the systems essential to spacecraft health continue operating. This incident of Odyssey temporarily going into safe mode has been attributed to a burst of solar activity.) Since the rover team didn’t have current information about Spirit’s position and state, the rover spent eight successive Martian days, or sols, collecting untargeted remote sensing data.
Data transmission directly to Earth from Spirit on sol 1046 (Dec. 12, 2006) confirmed that Spirit was healthy. Odyssey recovered the following day and resumed relaying data from Spirit, transmitted from the rover to the orbiter in the UHF radio band.
Sol-by-sol summary:
Sol 1043 (Dec. 9, 2006): Spirit surveyed the rover’s tracks using the miniature thermal emission spectrometer and measured atmospheric dust opacity with the panoramic camera. The rover surveyed the sky and ground with the miniature thermal emission spectrometer.
Sol 1044: Spirit surveyed the area where the rover spent the past Martian winter with the miniature thermal emission spectrometer and took panoramic camera images of the area.
Sol 1045: Spirit took thumbnail images of the sky with the panoramic camera and scanned the sky for clouds with the navigation camera. Spirit monitored the rover mast for dust and relayed the first bits of scientific data collected and stored on sol 1040 (Dec. 6, 2006).
Sol 1046: Spirit surveyed the rover’s winter haven with the miniature thermal emission spectrometer and monitored atmospheric dust with the panoramic camera. The rover scanned the sky and ground with the miniature thermal emission spectrometer.
Sol 1047: Spirit collected miniature thermal emission spectrometer data from a soil target known as “Tyrone” and continued acquiring panoramic camera images of the rover’s winter haven.
Sol 1048: Spirit acquired thumbnail images of the sky with the panoramic camera and scanned the sky for clouds with the navigation camera. The rover monitored atmospheric dust with the panoramic camera, and surveyed the sky, ground, and calibration target with the miniature thermal emission spectrometer.
Sol 1049: Spirit acquired navigation camera images in support of miniature thermal emission spectrometer measurements of the rover’s surroundings. The rover monitored atmospheric dust with the panoramic camera and acquired panoramic images of the area ahead.
Sol 1050 (Dec. 16, 2006): Spirit’s instructions call for scanning for clouds and dust devils with the navigation camera, surveying the mast for dust accumulation and observing the sky and ground with the miniature thermal emission spectrometer.
Odometry:
As of sol 1048 (Dec. 14, 2006), Spirit’s total odometry was 6,885.62 meters meters (4.28 miles).
