Sol 678 - 679 Update on Curiosity from USGS Scientist Ryan Anderson: In the Dunes

The sol 678 drive was successful! We traversed 66.5 meters, ending our drive right were we expected near some picturesque wind-blown ripples. Looking at these ripples in orbital HiRISE images , you might think they were big sand dunes, but in truth they aren’t very tall at all.


On sol 679, we have some Mastcam observations of the ripples and a drive direction Mastcam mosaic, followed by MAHLI imaging of the wheels. The rest of the weekend, the rover will be in a planned runout mode, where it automatically executes a set of simple commands, allowing the team to enjoy the 4th of July weekend. RAD and REMS will continue their environmental monitoring during the runout, but the other science instruments will be off. Curiosity will be ready and waiting to do more driving and science on Monday!


Dates of planned rover activities described in these reports are subject to change due to a variety of factors related to the Martian environment, communication relays and rover status.