Sol 2109 update by Abigail Fraeman: Voyageurs (12 July 2018)
I first became involved with Curiosity shortly after starting my third year of graduate school in the fall of 2011. My graduate advisor was selected to join the mission as a Participating Scientist, and he enlisted me to help analyze orbital data over Mt. Sharp as part of that role.
In particular, I was tasked to examine data from the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) to see what minerals Curiosity might find when she landed and, importantly, where exactly she should drive to visit the best exposures.
One of the most the significant things I found was the signature of the mineral hematite (Fe2O3) associated with the feature we now call Vera Rubin Ridge. Many collaborators and I spent the winter and spring of 2012 -- the time between launch and landing -- working out the geological implications of this discovery as best we could using orbital data, and beginning to ponder the specific observations Curiosity should make when she reached the ridge. I first presented these findings to the Curiosity science team on sol 15 of the mission (or August 20, 2012 Earth time).
Almost 2100 sols and countless exciting discoveries later, Curiosity is now poised to drill at the exact spot we first detected the strongest hematite signature over seven years ago. We’ve named the new drill target “Voyageurs” after a National Park in northern Minnesota. I love this name because it reminds me we truly are a team of voyagers, participating in a mission of exploration and discovery. The data we collect from this sample will help us better understand the environments that shaped Mt. Sharp over time, and, on a personal level, it will allow me to test some of the hypotheses I first started to formulate as a graduate student back in 2012.
Sol 2109 will be the first sol of our drilling campaign at Voyageurs (very close to the former target “Stranraer” that we examined back around sol 2004). The main focus of the sol’s plan will be contact science of the site, including DRT, MAHLI, and APXS observations. We’ll also take a Mastcam documentation of yesterday’s AEGIS target and do some ChemCam calibration activities. As always, we will continue to take environmental science observations to monitor the ongoing dust storm. As you can imagine, I am quite anxious and excited to see what we find!
Sols 2110-2112 update by Lauren Edgar: Let the drill fest begin! (13 July 2018)
Drilling on another planet is no easy feat, and each time we have the opportunity to do so on Mars feels pretty special. The focus of the weekend three-sol plan is to drill the target “Voyageurs,” which is part of an outcrop that shows a high hematite signature in orbital data.
The weekend plan kicks off with several Navcam and Mastcam observations of the atmosphere to continue to monitor the ongoing dust storm from our unique vantage point on the ground. Then ChemCam will analyze the “Voyageurs” target, followed by Mastcam multispectral imaging. Curiosity will continue several important environmental monitoring observations later in the afternoon and first thing the next morning, and throughout the second and third sols. The second sol also includes more Mastcam change detection observations of three different targets to look for changes and the movement of fine material. Then we’ll acquire MAHLI pre-drill images, and APXS on the future dump locations. With those observations complete, we’ll be “go” for the full drill of the “Voyageurs” target on Sol 2112! I’ll be on duty on Monday, so I’m anxiously awaiting the results of the drilling attempt and look forward to finding out what this rock is made of!
Sol 2113 update by Lauren Edgar: Hard as a rock (16 July 2018)
Unfortunately, we found out this morning that the “Voyageurs” drill target was a much harder rock than expected. While our drill plan executed perfectly, our bit stopped short of the full depth we need for sampling. The engineers are still evaluating the data to better understand the target. I had a busy morning as SOWG Chair, as the team had to come up with a new plan for today while thinking about our longer-term strategy. Ultimately, we decided to focus on contact science and documenting the mini drill hole in today’s plan.
The plan kicks off with several Navcam observations to monitor atmospheric opacity during the ongoing dust storm. Then we’ll take several Mastcam change detection observations to characterize the movement of sand, followed by several ChemCam observations to assess the diversity of color and composition in the bedrock here. We’ll also take a ChemCam RMI image of the “Voyageurs” target, which will help with targeting the drill hole with ChemCam in tomorrow’s plan. The afternoon includes a few more environmental monitoring activities, including a Navcam line-of-sight image, Mastcam tau, and crater rim extinction observation. Then Curiosity will image the drill chuck, drill bit, and turret, to monitor our tools. In the evening, we’ll acquire an APXS integration on the drill tailings, and overnight we’ll get a longer APXS integration on the drill hole. Today is a reminder that it’s hard to operate a rover and drill on another planet, but I’m hopeful that we’ll find a way to sample this part of the ridge!
Sol 2114 update by Mark Salvatore: Finishing Up at the Voyageurs Drill Site (17 July 2018)
After our attempt to drill the Voyageurs target did not reach sufficient depth due to the impressive hardness of the rock , the team is beginning to finish up its activities at this location before heading a bit further uphill to find a more suitable (i.e., softer) drill target. All evidence suggests that this rock target is one of the hardest yet observed in Gale crater, a property that may be indicative of this entire section of the Vera Rubin Ridge. To a geologist, variations in rock hardness could indicate several different physical and chemical properties about a rock. It is important for us to further characterize and understand why this rock unit is so much harder than the underlying rocks within the Murray formation. Could this increased hardness be related to changes in water chemistry as the sedimentary rocks were being deposited? Or, could this increased hardness be due to subsequent cementation as iron-rich water was injected into the previously deposited sedimentary rocks? In order to address these possible formation mechanisms (and countless others), we must continue to gather data on the physical, chemical, and mineralogical properties of this portion of the Vera Rubin Ridge.
Today’s rover activities contain a combination of scientific investigations and engineering activities. The plan starts with a short imaging science block around 11:30am local time, where Mastcam will be used to acquire images of the surrounding landscape to search for short-term changes to the surface, including sand migration and changes to dust cover. Navcam will also be used to investigate the atmospheric dust content and to search for nearby dust devils. Following this block of observations, Curiosity will use the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) high-resolution camera to investigate the shallow Voyageurs drill hole and to image the rover wheels with its dust cover closed (to avoid dirtying the camera lens). After a short nap and a data uplink to the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter as it passes overhead, Curiosity will embark on another block of science activities beginning around 3:00pm local time. This second suite will include Mastcam images of the dusty atmosphere, a ChemCam laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) chemical analysis of the Voyageurs drill hole, a LIBS measurements of the ChemCam calibration target, and a follow-up Mastcam documentation image of the drill hole. This will conclude the sol 2114 science activities.
I served as the geology science theme lead during yesterday’s plan, when the team first had to deal with the realization that the drill activities at the Voyageurs target did not penetrate deep enough into the target to acquire materials for analysis onboard the rover. While disappointing, the information gathered about the rock properties and drill activities led to a deluge of productive scientific discussions about how to proceed and what these observations tell us about the geologic environment that Curiosity is investigating. It’s moments like these that remind me of how lucky I am to be working with such an impressive group of scientists and engineers, who can collectively turn a frustrating sigh into a gasp of excitement as we think about our next observations and what more we have to learn about this interesting and foreign environment.
Sol 2115 update by Ken Herkenhoff: New method of wheel imaging (18 July 2018)
The priorities for Sol 2115 are to image the rover’s wheels and acquire the images needed to plan a drive back to the Sol 1999 location, where we might start another drilling campaign. The MAHLI images of the wheels taken on Sol 2114 with the dust cover closed show that there is enough dust on the cover to make it difficult to see the wheels, so a different approach to wheel imaging was planned for Sol 2115. To minimize the risk of dust contamination of MAHLI’s optics while the cover is open, MAHLI will image only the wheels on the left side of the rover from above the wheels, keeping MAHLI pointing downward while the dust cover is open. The wheels on the right side of the rover will be imaged by the left Mastcam rather than MAHLI. Then the rover will turn in place to allow imaging in the direction of the next drive, toward the southwest. After acquiring the standard post-drive data, Mastcam will observe the Sun and crater rim to continue the monitoring of the dust opacity over Gale Crater. These observations will be repeated twice early in the morning on Sol 2116 to look for short-term changes in opacity. In addition, ChemCam will use the AEGIS software to autonomously select a bedrock target for a 3x3 LIBS raster. Tactical planning went smoothly, so it was an easy day for me as SOWG Chair!
Sol 2116 update by Ken Herkenhoff: Driving back to Sgurr of Eigg (19 July 2018)
The Sol 2115 wheel imaging went well, and we received the images needed to plan a drive back to “Sgurr of Eigg,” near the Sol 1999 rover position. The >50-meter drive dominates the Sol 2116 plan, but leaves time for continued atmospheric and other scientific observations. Before the drive, Right Mastcam will image the ChemCam target selected by AEGIS on Sol 2115 and Navcam will monitor the opacity of the atmosphere. After the drive and the standard post-drive imaging needed to plan weekend activities, Mastcam will measure the atmospheric opacity and ChemCam will observe another target selected by AEGIS. Early in the morning of Sol 2117, Mastcam and Navcam will again monitor opacity, and Navcam will look for clouds overhead and near the horizon to measure wind velocity.
Earth and Mars are getting closer to each other this month, and by the end of this month Mars will be closer to Earth than it has been since 2003! Mars is visible low in the southeast after evening twilight. If you have a good telescope, you can monitor the progress of the global dust storm that is being intensely studied from spacecraft orbiting Mars as well as by MSL.
Sols 2117-2119 update by Michelle Minitti: “Ben” There (20 July 2018)
Curiosity made great progress yesterday across the “Vera Rubin Ridge” toward the site of our next drilling attempt at “Sgurr of Eigg”. In this weekend plan, we will collect more data about the ridge materials around us, and the sky above us, before embarking on a ~12 m drive to Sgurr of Eigg. We drove back into the Torridon quadrangle, so the target names once again have Scottish flavor. ChemCam shot three targets, each with a different characteristic. “Ben Stack” is a representative laminated bedrock target, “Ben Avon” is bedrock with small nodular features throughout it, and “Ben Lawers” includes a thin, resistant layer jutting out above the laminated bedrock surrounding it. APXS will also analyze a representative bedrock target, “Walsay,” but for reasons beyond just the normal chemical characterization of a target. APXS will analyze Walsay at four different distances - from touching the bedrock surface to hovering 3 cm above it - to refine how distance to the target affects APXS data. There are instances when the bedrock is rough enough that APXS cannot be placed directly in contact with a desired target. By conducting this calibration activity at Walsay, we will be better able to understand and interpret APXS data acquired in just such a situation.
The dust storm continues to envelop Curiosity, so our plan includes observations aimed at monitoring the amount of dust in the atmosphere at both early morning and midday times. We planned a dust devil survey, and a pair of cloud movies aimed at the horizon and at the zenith. ChemCam also took aim at the sky with a passive spectral observation to monitor the aerosols and trace gases in the atmosphere.
After the drive on Sol 2119, the rover will unstow her arm before imaging the workspace, providing the team with an unobstructed view of our next drill attempt site. Hopefully, we will be able to hit the ground running with our drill plan on Monday!
Sol 2120 update by Abigail Fraeman: A Little Bump (23 July 2018)
Our weekend drive completed successfully and we have our next intended drill target attempt in the rover workspace. Unfortunately, the combination of the rover’s pitch and roll would make future delivery of drilled sample to SAM via the new feed extended sample transfer (FEST) method impossible in our current orientation, so tosol we are going to scooch the rover over slightly to put it in a more favorable position for drill sample delivery activities.
The main activity for tosol is the small bump to get us into a good drill position. We also managed to get some science in before the bump. We will take a MAHLI image of “Sgurr of Eigg,” a contact science target from almost 120 sols ago, to see how much dust has deposited on it since we DRTed it. We will also take some ChemCam passive spectra from another familiar target, “Appin,” and then a Mastcam multispectral observation of both Sgurr of Eigg and Appin. We’ll finish out the morning science block with a Navcam dust devil survey and get some additional environmental science monitoring in the afternoon, including a tau observation and image of the crater rim to the north.
I first became involved with Curiosity shortly after starting my third year of graduate school in the fall of 2011. My graduate advisor was selected to join the mission as a Participating Scientist, and he enlisted me to help analyze orbital data over Mt. Sharp as part of that role.
In particular, I was tasked to examine data from the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) to see what minerals Curiosity might find when she landed and, importantly, where exactly she should drive to visit the best exposures.
One of the most the significant things I found was the signature of the mineral hematite (Fe2O3) associated with the feature we now call Vera Rubin Ridge. Many collaborators and I spent the winter and spring of 2012 -- the time between launch and landing -- working out the geological implications of this discovery as best we could using orbital data, and beginning to ponder the specific observations Curiosity should make when she reached the ridge. I first presented these findings to the Curiosity science team on sol 15 of the mission (or August 20, 2012 Earth time).
Almost 2100 sols and countless exciting discoveries later, Curiosity is now poised to drill at the exact spot we first detected the strongest hematite signature over seven years ago. We’ve named the new drill target “Voyageurs” after a National Park in northern Minnesota. I love this name because it reminds me we truly are a team of voyagers, participating in a mission of exploration and discovery. The data we collect from this sample will help us better understand the environments that shaped Mt. Sharp over time, and, on a personal level, it will allow me to test some of the hypotheses I first started to formulate as a graduate student back in 2012.
Sol 2109 will be the first sol of our drilling campaign at Voyageurs (very close to the former target “Stranraer” that we examined back around sol 2004). The main focus of the sol’s plan will be contact science of the site, including DRT, MAHLI, and APXS observations. We’ll also take a Mastcam documentation of yesterday’s AEGIS target and do some ChemCam calibration activities. As always, we will continue to take environmental science observations to monitor the ongoing dust storm. As you can imagine, I am quite anxious and excited to see what we find!
Sols 2110-2112 update by Lauren Edgar: Let the drill fest begin! (13 July 2018)
Drilling on another planet is no easy feat, and each time we have the opportunity to do so on Mars feels pretty special. The focus of the weekend three-sol plan is to drill the target “Voyageurs,” which is part of an outcrop that shows a high hematite signature in orbital data.
The weekend plan kicks off with several Navcam and Mastcam observations of the atmosphere to continue to monitor the ongoing dust storm from our unique vantage point on the ground. Then ChemCam will analyze the “Voyageurs” target, followed by Mastcam multispectral imaging. Curiosity will continue several important environmental monitoring observations later in the afternoon and first thing the next morning, and throughout the second and third sols. The second sol also includes more Mastcam change detection observations of three different targets to look for changes and the movement of fine material. Then we’ll acquire MAHLI pre-drill images, and APXS on the future dump locations. With those observations complete, we’ll be “go” for the full drill of the “Voyageurs” target on Sol 2112! I’ll be on duty on Monday, so I’m anxiously awaiting the results of the drilling attempt and look forward to finding out what this rock is made of!
Sol 2113 update by Lauren Edgar: Hard as a rock (16 July 2018)
Unfortunately, we found out this morning that the “Voyageurs” drill target was a much harder rock than expected. While our drill plan executed perfectly, our bit stopped short of the full depth we need for sampling. The engineers are still evaluating the data to better understand the target. I had a busy morning as SOWG Chair, as the team had to come up with a new plan for today while thinking about our longer-term strategy. Ultimately, we decided to focus on contact science and documenting the mini drill hole in today’s plan.
The plan kicks off with several Navcam observations to monitor atmospheric opacity during the ongoing dust storm. Then we’ll take several Mastcam change detection observations to characterize the movement of sand, followed by several ChemCam observations to assess the diversity of color and composition in the bedrock here. We’ll also take a ChemCam RMI image of the “Voyageurs” target, which will help with targeting the drill hole with ChemCam in tomorrow’s plan. The afternoon includes a few more environmental monitoring activities, including a Navcam line-of-sight image, Mastcam tau, and crater rim extinction observation. Then Curiosity will image the drill chuck, drill bit, and turret, to monitor our tools. In the evening, we’ll acquire an APXS integration on the drill tailings, and overnight we’ll get a longer APXS integration on the drill hole. Today is a reminder that it’s hard to operate a rover and drill on another planet, but I’m hopeful that we’ll find a way to sample this part of the ridge!
Sol 2114 update by Mark Salvatore: Finishing Up at the Voyageurs Drill Site (17 July 2018)
After our attempt to drill the Voyageurs target did not reach sufficient depth due to the impressive hardness of the rock , the team is beginning to finish up its activities at this location before heading a bit further uphill to find a more suitable (i.e., softer) drill target. All evidence suggests that this rock target is one of the hardest yet observed in Gale crater, a property that may be indicative of this entire section of the Vera Rubin Ridge. To a geologist, variations in rock hardness could indicate several different physical and chemical properties about a rock. It is important for us to further characterize and understand why this rock unit is so much harder than the underlying rocks within the Murray formation. Could this increased hardness be related to changes in water chemistry as the sedimentary rocks were being deposited? Or, could this increased hardness be due to subsequent cementation as iron-rich water was injected into the previously deposited sedimentary rocks? In order to address these possible formation mechanisms (and countless others), we must continue to gather data on the physical, chemical, and mineralogical properties of this portion of the Vera Rubin Ridge.
Today’s rover activities contain a combination of scientific investigations and engineering activities. The plan starts with a short imaging science block around 11:30am local time, where Mastcam will be used to acquire images of the surrounding landscape to search for short-term changes to the surface, including sand migration and changes to dust cover. Navcam will also be used to investigate the atmospheric dust content and to search for nearby dust devils. Following this block of observations, Curiosity will use the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) high-resolution camera to investigate the shallow Voyageurs drill hole and to image the rover wheels with its dust cover closed (to avoid dirtying the camera lens). After a short nap and a data uplink to the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter as it passes overhead, Curiosity will embark on another block of science activities beginning around 3:00pm local time. This second suite will include Mastcam images of the dusty atmosphere, a ChemCam laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) chemical analysis of the Voyageurs drill hole, a LIBS measurements of the ChemCam calibration target, and a follow-up Mastcam documentation image of the drill hole. This will conclude the sol 2114 science activities.
I served as the geology science theme lead during yesterday’s plan, when the team first had to deal with the realization that the drill activities at the Voyageurs target did not penetrate deep enough into the target to acquire materials for analysis onboard the rover. While disappointing, the information gathered about the rock properties and drill activities led to a deluge of productive scientific discussions about how to proceed and what these observations tell us about the geologic environment that Curiosity is investigating. It’s moments like these that remind me of how lucky I am to be working with such an impressive group of scientists and engineers, who can collectively turn a frustrating sigh into a gasp of excitement as we think about our next observations and what more we have to learn about this interesting and foreign environment.
Sol 2115 update by Ken Herkenhoff: New method of wheel imaging (18 July 2018)
The priorities for Sol 2115 are to image the rover’s wheels and acquire the images needed to plan a drive back to the Sol 1999 location, where we might start another drilling campaign. The MAHLI images of the wheels taken on Sol 2114 with the dust cover closed show that there is enough dust on the cover to make it difficult to see the wheels, so a different approach to wheel imaging was planned for Sol 2115. To minimize the risk of dust contamination of MAHLI’s optics while the cover is open, MAHLI will image only the wheels on the left side of the rover from above the wheels, keeping MAHLI pointing downward while the dust cover is open. The wheels on the right side of the rover will be imaged by the left Mastcam rather than MAHLI. Then the rover will turn in place to allow imaging in the direction of the next drive, toward the southwest. After acquiring the standard post-drive data, Mastcam will observe the Sun and crater rim to continue the monitoring of the dust opacity over Gale Crater. These observations will be repeated twice early in the morning on Sol 2116 to look for short-term changes in opacity. In addition, ChemCam will use the AEGIS software to autonomously select a bedrock target for a 3x3 LIBS raster. Tactical planning went smoothly, so it was an easy day for me as SOWG Chair!
Sol 2116 update by Ken Herkenhoff: Driving back to Sgurr of Eigg (19 July 2018)
The Sol 2115 wheel imaging went well, and we received the images needed to plan a drive back to “Sgurr of Eigg,” near the Sol 1999 rover position. The >50-meter drive dominates the Sol 2116 plan, but leaves time for continued atmospheric and other scientific observations. Before the drive, Right Mastcam will image the ChemCam target selected by AEGIS on Sol 2115 and Navcam will monitor the opacity of the atmosphere. After the drive and the standard post-drive imaging needed to plan weekend activities, Mastcam will measure the atmospheric opacity and ChemCam will observe another target selected by AEGIS. Early in the morning of Sol 2117, Mastcam and Navcam will again monitor opacity, and Navcam will look for clouds overhead and near the horizon to measure wind velocity.
Earth and Mars are getting closer to each other this month, and by the end of this month Mars will be closer to Earth than it has been since 2003! Mars is visible low in the southeast after evening twilight. If you have a good telescope, you can monitor the progress of the global dust storm that is being intensely studied from spacecraft orbiting Mars as well as by MSL.
Sols 2117-2119 update by Michelle Minitti: “Ben” There (20 July 2018)
Curiosity made great progress yesterday across the “Vera Rubin Ridge” toward the site of our next drilling attempt at “Sgurr of Eigg”. In this weekend plan, we will collect more data about the ridge materials around us, and the sky above us, before embarking on a ~12 m drive to Sgurr of Eigg. We drove back into the Torridon quadrangle, so the target names once again have Scottish flavor. ChemCam shot three targets, each with a different characteristic. “Ben Stack” is a representative laminated bedrock target, “Ben Avon” is bedrock with small nodular features throughout it, and “Ben Lawers” includes a thin, resistant layer jutting out above the laminated bedrock surrounding it. APXS will also analyze a representative bedrock target, “Walsay,” but for reasons beyond just the normal chemical characterization of a target. APXS will analyze Walsay at four different distances - from touching the bedrock surface to hovering 3 cm above it - to refine how distance to the target affects APXS data. There are instances when the bedrock is rough enough that APXS cannot be placed directly in contact with a desired target. By conducting this calibration activity at Walsay, we will be better able to understand and interpret APXS data acquired in just such a situation.
The dust storm continues to envelop Curiosity, so our plan includes observations aimed at monitoring the amount of dust in the atmosphere at both early morning and midday times. We planned a dust devil survey, and a pair of cloud movies aimed at the horizon and at the zenith. ChemCam also took aim at the sky with a passive spectral observation to monitor the aerosols and trace gases in the atmosphere.
After the drive on Sol 2119, the rover will unstow her arm before imaging the workspace, providing the team with an unobstructed view of our next drill attempt site. Hopefully, we will be able to hit the ground running with our drill plan on Monday!
Sol 2120 update by Abigail Fraeman: A Little Bump (23 July 2018)
Our weekend drive completed successfully and we have our next intended drill target attempt in the rover workspace. Unfortunately, the combination of the rover’s pitch and roll would make future delivery of drilled sample to SAM via the new feed extended sample transfer (FEST) method impossible in our current orientation, so tosol we are going to scooch the rover over slightly to put it in a more favorable position for drill sample delivery activities.
The main activity for tosol is the small bump to get us into a good drill position. We also managed to get some science in before the bump. We will take a MAHLI image of “Sgurr of Eigg,” a contact science target from almost 120 sols ago, to see how much dust has deposited on it since we DRTed it. We will also take some ChemCam passive spectra from another familiar target, “Appin,” and then a Mastcam multispectral observation of both Sgurr of Eigg and Appin. We’ll finish out the morning science block with a Navcam dust devil survey and get some additional environmental science monitoring in the afternoon, including a tau observation and image of the crater rim to the north.
Curiosity update, sols 2093-2162: Three tries to successful drill atop Vera Rubin Ridge-- 4
![Curiosity update, sols 2093-2162: Three tries to successful drill atop Vera Rubin Ridge-- 4]()
Reviewed by Reshaper
on
October 15, 2018
Rating:
No comments: