I'm really loving the shadow in this rear hazcam:

http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportuni...BKP1314R0M2.JPG

Nice outline of the arrays, PMA, Low gain, High gain, and is that the sundial mast in there as well.

Probably the UHF antenna, and a pyro-bolt. I think the gnenom, errm, gnomen, err, sundial stalk bit would be behind the HGA shadow.

VERY cool picture

Doug

I reckon it is the sundial, compare to this navcam taken at an earlier time of sol. The shadows are shorter (the low gain and PMA shadows fall on the deck) and the sundial shadow falls right to the edge of the deck even at this time. The position, particularly relative to the pyro-bolt and the array outline matches too.

Nope - I think you're right.

Nice new view of some of the most eroded rocks at the base of CV...

Today, sol 1596, Opportunity continued its efforts to drive up to the wall of Cape Verde.
But this time, differently from previous days when the rear wheels were digging in the sand, specially the right one (left on the images), we can see they are back on "solid" ground. Reason is (I guess) because the rover moved back down slope and not uphill.

I hope this is just a sort of "tactical manouver".

They finaly read my previous post : http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.p...st&p=118402

From the front hazcam looks more like a turn in place to the left.

Color anaglyph of the nice rocks on the ground

Another turn in place to the left today. Seems that they may be orientating for a drive up slope and possibly out of the crater?

Yes that's what I think they're doing. Lots and Lots of images looking up the crater to the rim lately.

I dunno... are they really going to give up on driving closer to the rockface when they're so close now? I was wondering myself if they were having second thoughts when I saw the most recent navcam shots, which seemed to be Oppy taking a good long look at the ground and rocks at her feet and around her, almost as if she was reaching out with a toe and testing the rocks on the edge of a pool... but there seem to be no huge obstacles in her path, and to come this close and not try to get closer still would be frustrating for the team, wouldn't it? Maybe they're just checking out an exit strategy and route before edging closer to Cape Verde... thinking "Well, if we really can't get any farther we can always come back here and head out in that direction..."?

IMO. they are just turning the rover to try climbing on a different angle. We might get the answer in two sols, after the next drive attempt.
If they were giving up and leaving the crater, the way out would be (again IMO) by exactly the same path as they got to the current position.

I agree, those recent pancams of the rim have the look of "longing glances of intent". However, I'm sure this is just a re-orientation to try a different approach to the wall, or perhaps something in that direction has caught their eye.

AFAIK, the pancams from sol 1594 or later, rim or not, are shots on all filters of selected science targets.

Fresh pics of the latest drive, during sol 1600 (!!!) , on the exploratorium.
This one was smooth, no slip (?), with all wheels on "solid" ground. I think we are back on the way to the rockface.

Looking at the rear hazcam images from tosol (1600) and the previous ones (1598) I have the impression that the little rock at the center of the fov was blocking the rear right wheel on the earlier drive attempts. The illumination is quite bad on the pictures so I had to enhance them a bit; here below is the one from sol 1600.
Click to view attachment

Now that's a luvverly chunk of layered rock...

Click to view attachment

Some wheel movement on sol 1602, but no distance driven:
sol 1600 hazcam: http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportuni...C7P1212L0M3.JPG
sol 1602 hazcam: http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportuni...CIP1214L0M1.JPG
Wheel closeups always make me nervous: http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportuni...CHP2149R1M1.JPG

What was the planned movement on these last few drives? Have the drives been aborting from slippage?

Can't tell.
Data stopped flowing into the pancam web on the 24th. Hiccup?

New update today: http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/spotlight/2...pportunity.html

Hmm, maybe a reference in there to some recent comments here? Nah...

Yeah, Tesheiner pointed out that troublesome rock to us a few days ago.
I was getting a little concerned about Opportunity's recent predicament. This is music to my ears.

Good news!
I was a bit nervous after the last move uphill when she got free of the "potato". I said to myself: "if the next move is to the left, bad, they are giving up; if to the right, good, they are taking another path to the wall". Now the approach is clear.

Upslope. Sideways. Are we any closer to figuring out where Nevada is?

It's here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nevada

Now seriously. Ilbasso correctly identified it some time ago (post: http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.p...st&p=120312)


There was a pancam shot on sol 1591 named after it.
01591::p2543::21::8::8::0::0::4::20::pancam_nevada_dusty_L257R1
And here's the page with the images taken on that sol: http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all...nity_p1591.html

And to put it in context, here's a navcam mosaic of images taken on sols 1600 and 1602. Nevada is to the right of the picture.
Click to view attachment

Hope you've got those 3D glasses handy Nick...!

Almost There

The Edge

And here's a colour shot of "Nevada"... (which is very well seen on "Almost There", by the way...)

Click to view attachment

At last a late afternoon image of the "mess". Hmm, the wheel doesn't look free - rather still digged...

http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportuni...CSP1304R0M1.JPG

Oh, yeah...donned them the second I read your post! (Staying home today because the hot water went out in my apartment...AGAIN... )

Remarkable, is all. Damn, we're that close? Nevada sure looks like a crystal of some sort to me...gypsum? Aragonite? A silicate of some sort? All are minerals that require water to form, so hopefully they'll take a moment to look it over more carefully.

At last a view of late afternoon shadows of the rim reaching across the crater! Spectacular! I've been hoping for such a shot for a long time...

Why did only the front left wheel move on the SOL 1604 "drive"?

I think there was a drive attempt between sol 1600 and 1602, but it looks like it resulted in slippage abort. Both rear wheels seem to show some slippage and the front wheels, i.e Oppy is a bit sunken.

Lots of questions. Perhaps we might get some answers on the monthly report which should be online @TPS in a few sols days.

Somebody PLEASE tell my wife that I did something right for once!

Have we captured an image taken when Opportunity was dreaming of an earlier time?!
From today's Front Haz Camera download - a blast from the past

It threw me for a moment.
Astro0

Just like a dream/reminder of all the adventures that she overcame.

Really really nice done!
Call it "Robots Dream".

While we wait for Opportunity get free of this mess, here's a 360º panorama made with navcam pictures from sols 1600 up to 1605.
Click to view attachment

A polar version too. Note that north is to the left; the picture is rotated for aestetic (imo) purposes.
Click to view attachment

A bit of a drive tosol. And a spectacular new hazcam image - one of my favourite of the entire mission:
Click to view attachment
Full image.

The silhouette image from Victoria Crater was a musical interlude. This is a crescendo!

This "sunburst" pic is pretty cool, too... Seems like Oppy's future's so bright she's gotta wear shades...

Seems to me that we have moved forward about a foot at some point--are we free of the mess?
From here 7/25 to here 8/1

> are we free of the mess?

Not yet, IMO.
Based on the data from the pancam web the latest "drive" was done in six steps and the slippage was quite high on all of them: 93%, 93%, 88%, 78%, 89%, and 94%.

According to the latest Flight Director Report Opportunity's wheel stalled.

http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/videos/mer/mer20080731/

Is this the same as with Spirit's wheel, that it won't rotate?

In the past, they've used the word "stall" to indicate a one-time event...i.e., a mechanical component did not respond to a given command. Have to wait & see if it's a persistent problem or not.

Forgetting the MECA story for a while, here's a colourisation of a beautiful layered rock imaged by Oppy... hope some of you like it

Click to view attachment

What's not to like? Beautiful, Stu, thank you!

(STILL wanna take a rock hammer to these things & look between the layers. Guess it's up to my great-great-great, etc. grandsons and/or daughters to do so, though...rats.)

At least we have something interesting to look if we're stuck here for the rest of the mission.

Looking back at some of the movements made while they were taking closeups of the wheels I suspect it was the steering motor that stalled.

Big news from the new PS update: