Another year has passed and the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity just keeps right on roving.
To mark the milestone, MarsStu and I have once more collaborated on a poemster (poem/poster).

Stu has done another of his incredible works of prose (be prepared for there to be sudden dust in your eyes)
Hopefully my combined art captures its 'spirit'.

Click to view attachment

As usual, there are larger versions and a few other bits'n'pieces on my blog:
http://astro0.wordpress.com/mer9/

JPL has released a story on Opportunity now entering its 10th year. Read here:
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2013-030

Today also premiers a new movie called 'The Changing Face of Mars'. Check it out:
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/faceofmars/

In closing:
A massive and sincere thanks goes out to everyone on the Mars Exploration Rover team. It has been an incredible nine years and we have been privileged on UMSF to be allowed to follow along from the 'backseat'. Thank you and may the wind always be at your back and the sun upon your face. And may the winds of destiny carry you aloft to dance with the stars.

Thank you Stu and Astro0. I miss driving Oppy, she was my first, you never forget your first. Drive Strong!

Paolo

And yes, it's strange, I had some dust in my eyes :')

Nine Years… It's incredible. Who would have knew in the past few years this was going to be so great ? Nobody, even me. I'm remembering the times when Oppy's have gone into Endurance Crater, and some people saying : "She will never comes out of here." And the same thing with Purgatory Dune. And Victoria. And here we are, at Endeavour.

Nine Years…

Thank you Astro0 and Stu for this unique poestry .

I think this is your best yet, guys...wow.

<goes to flush martian dust from my eyes with terrestrial liquid water>

Oppy, my friend. You may be martian now, but you are certainly not alone.

Thanks to the MER team... may the ride continue.

Thanks to UMSF for illuminating this ride.

Thanks to Astro0 and Stu for giving her voice.

Craig

But from Opportunity's point of view she has experienced less than 5 Mars years and probably doesn't know what all the fuss is about. Now 5th Martian year with wheels on the ground, that will be the anniversary to mark. Only 142 Sol to go.

Only another 142 sols until the 5th Mars' anniversary!

Stu! Hurry! We've got work to do!

A nice little interview with Steve Squyres on Opportunity's adventures:
http://www.spaceflightnow.com/news/n1301/25opportunity/

Extract:
Q: Opportunity has now covered a bit more than 22 miles since landing. Where are you off to next?

A: South. We're going to finish up our work at Matijevic Hill as quickly as we can. That's going to take several more weeks to do because we still have a lot of stuff on our to-do list. But after that, we're going to head south. The rim of Endeavour Crater sort of sticks up through the sulfate sandstones we spent so many years driving around on and there's a number of these rim segments we can explore.

The next one we're going to head to is south of our current location, so we will be heading across a gap in the rim, a place we call Botony Bay, and then up onto the next rim segment to the south. There are two hills to the south of us, one called Solander Point and farther south than that a great big thing called Cape Tribulation.

Q: Is there a long-range goal beyond that? A: Well, Cape Tribulation is at least as big as Husband Hill [explored by Spirit earlier in its mission], so we've got some major mountaineering ahead of us with this rover. Endeavour Crater is so large, there's the interior of it there's a big, big, big long stretch of rim that we can explore, there's enough here to keep us busy for years.

"...to keep us busy for years." I like the sound of that. Here's hoping.

http://spaceref.com/mars/curiousmars-oppor...-longevity.html
This is Pete Theisinger interview!