MISSION UPDATES | October 9, 2019

Sols 2551-2552: Analyzing the Glen Etive 2 Drill Sample

Written by Kenneth Herkenhoff, Planetary Geologist at USGS Astrogeology Science Center
Sols 2551-2552: Analyzing the Glen Etive 2 Drill Sample

The APXS was not perfectly centered over the Glen Etive 2 dump pile on Sol 2550, so the APXS team requested repositioning for another overnight integration on the dump pile rather than on the tailings as strategically planned. Power was an issue for planning, which made for a challenging day for me as SOWG Chair, but we were able to fit some remote sensing observations into the busy plan.

On Sol 2551, MAHLI will take images of the dump pile to see whether the APXS contact sensor made an imprint in the pile. Late that evening, MAHLI will image the CheMin inlet port and the wall of the drill hole using its LEDs for illumination. The APXS will then be placed on the center of the dump pile for an overnight integration, with CheMin performing another mineralogical analysis of the Glen Etive 2 drill sample in parallel.

On Sol 2552, MAHLI will take another image of the dump pile, to look for a new APXS imprint. Then ChemCam will fire its laser at a bedrock target dubbed "Skelbo" to measure its chemical composition. The Right Mastcam will take an image of Skelbo, then Navcam will search for clouds and dust devils before imaging the sky to measure variations in brightness and constrain the size of dust particles suspended in the atmosphere.