NASA Mars Rover Opportunity Update: June 18-24, 2014

OPPORTUNITY UPDATE:  Rover Has Enough Energy for Some Late-Night Work – sols 3697-3703, June 18, 2014-June 24, 2014:

Opportunity is exploring the west rim of Endeavour Crater. The rover is continuing south along the ridgeline that forms the spine of the crater rim, collecting color imagery of targets and outcrops along the way.

With ample energy, Opportunity has been able to conduct some late-night activities. On Sol 3697 (June 18, 2014), the rover collected an atmospheric argon measurement with the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS), and took advantage of a Phobos moon imaging opportunity. On Sol 3698 (June 19, 2014), the rover proceeded just over 82 feet (25 meters) to the south with another Phobos imagining opportunity that night, and an argon measurement on the next night. Sol 3700 (June 21, 2014), was the first sol of a 2-sol ‘touch ‘n go’ with the collection of a Microscopic Imager (MI) mosaic and subsequent APXS measurement on a surface target of opportunity. The rover then drove on the next sol, heading 42 feet (13.5) meters south.

On Sol 3703 (June 24, 2014), Opportunity began an approach to a surface target with a 31 feet (9.4-meter) move. Also, the project continues with the spacecraft clock correction, moving the clock about 3 seconds back each sol. There have been no Flash-related anomalies and the rover continues in good health.

As of Sol 3703 (June 24, 2014), the solar array energy production was 743 watt-hours with an atmospheric opacity (Tau) of 0.652 and a solar array dust factor of 0.894.

Total odometry is 24.60 miles (39.59 kilometers).

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