NASA Mars Rover Status Report 27 May 2004

SPIRIT UPDATE: Taking Time to Trench – sol 134-135, May 27, 2004

Spirit roved an impressive 109.5 meters (359.3 feet)
on sol 134. Two hours of the drive were guided by the
autonomous navigation system. After the long traverse,
Spirit completed an hour of post-drive science
observations with the panoramic and navigation cameras
and mini thermal emission spectrometer. The rover
finished the sol healthy and ready for another day on
Mars.

After so much driving on sol 134, Spirit got a break
and spent sol 135 doing in-situ science investigations
of its surroundings. It began the sol observing nearby
soil with the alpha particle X-ray spectrometer and
Moessbauer spectrometer. It then used the microscopic
imager to see the soil up close. After stowing the
instrument deployment device, Spirit used its wheels
to dig a trench and then imaged the trench with the
cameras on the mast.

Spirit’s odometer now reads 2,585.52 meters (1.6 miles).
The rover still has 680 meters (0.42 miles) to go
before reaching the base of the "Columbia Hills," but
will likely get there before sol 160.