Tag Archives: Mars Science Laboratory

Weather at Gale Crater

Posted on February 1, 2019 by rburnham
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Curiosity: Looking ahead, and farther ahead

Posted on February 1, 2019 by rburnham

Sol 2306, January 31, 2019. Curiosity’s Navcam took a composite showing the rolling surface of the clay-bearing unit directly before the rover (above), while the Remote Micro-Imager looked off into the distance to profile a hill (below).  Click either image … Continue reading →

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Curiosity measures a Mars mountain’s gravity

Posted on January 31, 2019 by rburnham

Ed. note: More about this result here, here, and here. Apollo 17 astronauts drove a moon buggy across the lunar surface in 1972, measuring gravity with a special instrument. There are no astronauts on Mars, but a group of clever … Continue reading →

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Curiosity update: Stepping up to the edge

Posted on January 31, 2019 by rburnham

Sols 2306-07, January 30, 2019, update by MSL engineer Ashley Stroupe: In today’s plan, Curiosity is venturing further into the clay unit territory. Prior to departure, we’ll be looking at several targets with Mastcam color and ChemCam to try to … Continue reading →

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Curiosity: Scoping Greenheugh

Posted on January 30, 2019 by rburnham

Sol 2304, January 29, 2019. Curiosity used its Remote Micro-Imager to scope out a distant butte dubbed Greenheugh. Note the layers of sedimentary rocks. Click the image to enlarge it. Sol 2304 raw images (from all cameras).

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Curiosity update: In the clay unit

Posted on January 30, 2019 by rburnham

Sols 2304-05, January 29, 2019, update by MSL scientist Christopher Edwards: Today’s plan found Curiosity solidly in new territory and the view couldn’t be more different than the patchy bedrock of the Vera Rubin Ridge. The workspace for the next … Continue reading →

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Weather at Gale Crater

Posted on January 30, 2019 by rburnham
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Curiosity: Farewell to Vera Rubin Ridge

Posted on January 28, 2019 by rburnham

NASA’s Curiosity rover has taken its last selfie on Vera Rubin Ridge and descended toward a clay region of Mount Sharp. The twisting ridge on Mars has been the rover’s home for more than a year, providing scientists with new … Continue reading →

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Curiosity update: Looking forward to the clay-bearing unit

Posted on January 28, 2019 by rburnham

Sols 2301-03, January 28, 2019, update by MSL scientist Ryan Anderson: This weekend’s plan started off on Sol 2301 with some Mastcam atmospheric observations, followed by ChemCam analysis of “Loch Ness” and “Loch Skeen,” examples of brown and gray bedrock. … Continue reading →

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CRISM: Iron-magnesium phyllosilicates near rim of Gale Crater

Posted on January 28, 2019 by rburnham

CRISM scene FRT0000B5A3 covers the southern wall of Gale crater, 15 km downslope from the rim. This region is gently sloping, compared to the northern wall, potentially indicating that the Gale basement rocks in the crater rim are mantled by … Continue reading →

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