MISSION UPDATES | August 20, 2013

Sol 369: Update On Curiosity From USGS Scientist Ken Herkenhoff: Revving Up

Written by Ken Herkenhoff, Planetary Geologist at USGS Astrogeology Science Center

After taking a week off from MSL tactical planning, I was back on shift as MAHLI/MARDI uplink lead yesterday, planning Sol 369. We are no longer restricted by the offset between Earth and Mars time, so we can plan drives every sol this week. After each drive, we continue to take MAHLI and MARDI images to document the changing terrain near the rover. However, the rover did not drive last weekend to allow SAM to make another measurement of the Cumberland drill sample; the SAM data have not all been received yet.