My-Oh-My! The scenery has certainly changed.

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Note: A little sky added for effect

In this processed 5x vertical stretch of Ant103 pano, the distant mountains on the centre/right should be the Iazu rim... Can someone confirm?

Confirmed. You can see the dark promontory that we've been able to see for years in the middle of it.

There's a distinct feature which appears darker; I think that is part of Iazu's ejecta blanket, and beyond that yes, I'd be surprised if it's anything but the rim of the crater itself.

Amazing Astro0

My version of this very promising pan



That will be EPIC !

... and a combination of three of the recent postings showing a broad pan across Endeavour - resolution reduced to match the navcams in the middle. A full pancam view of this will be quite the eyecatcher.

Phil

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Thanks for all the stunning pans, guys! Phil, that's the first view - Frankenstein monster or not! - that's given the impression of sitting on the edge of an immense crater - spectacular! And although the haziness of the far rim reduces the detail there, it adds to the sense of scale, making it pretty clear that the far rim is many km away...

Turning away from the view to the east for a moment, we had a beautiful view of Mercury Mariner 9/Approach crater come in today, from sol 2662:
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Quite a change from those two minute bumps on the horizon from a couple of months ago, eh?

Mariner 9!

Phil

Phil, thank you for that pan. That really helped to convert the orbital FOV of Endeavour into a coherent surface viewscape -- a true 'sense of place' if that makes sense. The view is absolutely stunning!

-- Pertinax

I second that, Ustrax !

... what a journey. .. this keeps just gettig better and better.

Wow....

I love the different horizon lines in the latest pans.. can see the lip of dip that Opportunity strolled out of ....

What a trek Oppy is making... and thanks to MER team for releasing all the images and thanks UMSF folks for the wonderful use you make of these.

Craig

Oh my...

We're almost there... almost there...

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My version

Thanks, guys! We should point out that the high point of CY is on the left side near horizon in that new pan (as Deimos mentioned).

The new pancam view of Mariner 9 is amazing - here's an anaglyph:
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Do any of the geologically-minded care to speculate on what the light-toned material at the top of the highest point on the rim is? It looks pretty smooth for bedrock. It can't just be lighting, since there are other surfaces with similar tilt. Light-toned soil/dust? Does anyone recall seeing similar features before?

Stretched crop...

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And… my version.



Sure we are F5'ing every days, and maybe every hour the exploratorium

But, I'm staring at these pictures. Fascinating, very fascinating.

The beauty of Mars, right there...

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That's art Stu.

Oppy is saving the best for last. Surely when the 'full view' is realised some of the MSM will pick up on it?

Or are we all more preoccupied with sad/banal events ATM?

P

Generally the MSM picks up things only when there are press releases. I expect there will be a press release about this when they judge the time is right. They have to coordinate with other events to time releases so that they'll have the greatest impact. With Dawn and Juno press briefings coming up they might not choose to ballyhoo a 7-year-old mission at the same time, but they've surprised me before.

Thanks antipode

I'm sure that once Oppy has trundled down through Botany Bay and is looking out across Endeavour, and has taken enough images to allow NASA to assemble a "HOAV" they deem worthy of sharing with the general public, there'll be a big press release from JPL and a media blitz.

Two or three days behind us, probably

Ok folks... 3D glasses on, and time to tiptoe around a pile of rugged rusted rocks...

http://twitpic.com/5vu7cc/full

Thanks for the good anaglyph - it really worked for me ( red/green colour blind usually means they don't work 4 me)
Mike

"Bagnold", the bright ripple near Victoria:
http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.p...mp;#entry126064

I'm curious about that. I wouldn't have thought the inability to distinguish between colors would cause an anaglyph to fail. Wearing glasses with the appropriate filters should still provide each eye with individual images, which should create the stereoscopic effect regardless of the colors they appear to be.

Just wanted to say Thanks to Everyone here for all the updates as Opportunity is about to arrive at Cape York.

Good Job

And Stu. Do you have all the Party Items ready to Celebrate. I might open up a Bottle of Wine when she arrives at Cape York.

I am a little late but... thanks Phil for the fantastic assembly you made: now i really see Endeavour Crater!

edit: herr, perhaps Endurance is more appropriate name!

Just a heads up that tosol (2667) is a driving sol - expect images in around 12hours time.

12 hours? That's no use, I'll be at work. Oh well, looks like another "I'm just nipping downstairs to get something from the kitchen..." sneaky phone night...

Er I have the same problem. Doesn't seem to matter what shade of grey it is it doesn't work. Which is why x-eyed is a boon.

Plans are to drive about 100 metres on 2667 and maybe do some IDD on outcrop.

CosmicRocker, you are correct. Red-green colorblindness, or any other kind of colorblindness, actually does not affect the ability to see red-blue anaglyphs in stereo for the reason that you explain. In fact, people who are red-green colorblind may arguably have a natural advantage over color-sighted people, because they aren't distracted by the color fringes visible to us in anaglyphs, which usually only encode grayscale information anyway.

Of course, empebe (and serpens?) may also be stereo-blind (which affects approximately the same fraction of the populace as colorblindness). Or they may always have assumed that red-blue glasses couldn't possibly work for them, in which case there may be a discovery waiting for them

Some data is now in the tracking database - looks like about 85m. Expect images in a little over 4 hours...

I think discussion of an arrival-date pool was cut off some time (years!) ago, but I still wonder:

At what point will we say that 'Opportunity has arrived at Endeavour'?

Candidates:

1. When Oppy stops going downhill, and starts climbing again.
2. When the terrain (marsrain?) changes.
3. When the first scarp or exposed bedrock is reached.

#2 is the closest, about where the purple line bends around an old crater.
#1, if GM's altitudes are correct, is about halfway from there to Spirit Point
#3 is obviously the farthest, but easiest to identify.

Less than a week, anyway. When we set out from Victoria, I didn't really think we'd
get this far.

One navcam pair is down

I think I might've forgotten my phone. Can we go back to Victoria?

I believe, reading here (http://opportunityendeavour.blogspot.com) that we're at the outcrop described. "The science team has expressed the desire to perhaps get some IDD work in on this outcrop, since it's some of the last we'll ever see in Meridiani."

While we all wait for the latest images to come back, I've been chatting to Scott again for my "Road to Endeavour" blog, if anyone would like to wander on over there and have a read...

http://roadtoendeavour.wordpress.com/2011/...g-up-with-scott

Excellent interview with Scott. Thanks Stu!

First pancams are in for Sol 2667

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Lots more details in 'hills' and some 'bumps' along the near rim coming into view

From that excellent interview, it's interesting to consider that some of the driver and science teams will stay on Oppy and some will switch over to MSL. I'm guessing it's just down the hall at JPL, so an Oppy veteran could always be available for consultation as the MSL team gets their feet sandy!

More navcams are in for Sol2667

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Simply wow, I havent been this excited since Spirits journey to the hills! And to think of the hills we will see with MSL!! (call me a hill freak, I like hills and layers)

They're driving again today! Slight repositioning for IDD use on this outcrop?

Thanks, Stu (and Scott), for another great interview. It is really great to get the inside perspective without having to wait five years. :-)

One of your best interviews yet Stu. In the same way that Scott is awestruck every day at operating the rovers on Mars. I'm awestruck that the likes of you and I have had a chance to get to know him.

Thanks Dan, appreciate that. I know what you mean. I'm constantly amazed that people like Scott, Steve Squyres and Jim Bell not only answer my emails but take the time out of their insanely busy schedules to answer questions, at length, and spend precious time "with" us out here. I know they enjoy doing it, and all see it as being part of their job, but... still... these guys are my rock stars and movie stars, and whenever I see their name in my email Inbox I almost need to give myself a shake to check I'm actually awake..!

On another topic: are these rocks actually on the end of Death Valley-like trails or is it just co-incidence..?

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A complete (?) if not distant view of Endeavour through two roughly stitched (ie: fudged together) rear hazcam images.

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Excitement levels rising here and I think I'm not the only one

Thank you for the awesome interview with Scott, Stu!

Sol 2667 in analgyph. It give a pretty good sensation of something big behind the near horizon.



And the single view, with an extension made from the left side of the right cam (!!!!) :

Woah! Two days without net access and I'm losing the most exciting part of the journey!
I'm now updating my "mars folder" with MMB and lets's see if I find some time later on to post a map update (sorry but I'm on vacation )