September 7th through 9th saw the robot arm systems go through a range of “reach tests”  which also allowed Curiosity it complete another series of “firsts” from Mars as the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) was used to capture a range of images of the rover to help with calibrating the system and to check-out Curiosity’s condition. All of these images were taken with the protective cover on MAHLI’s lens in the open position, and revealed the clarity with which the system can capture images.

There was a slight delay in progress on Sol 31 (Sept 6th), after a temperature reading from the arm caused Earthside concerns and the cancellation of planned activities while the matter was investigated and successfully resolved. Sol 32 (Sept 7th) saw the tests planned for the 6th Sept successfully completed, which included the capture of the images of the rover’s mast and the turret on the end of the robot arm I’ve previously reproduced here. A series of vibration tests were also carried out, designed to characterise the function of the sample processing device in the turret (the vibrations will cause the system to act like a sieve, separating-out very fine Martian surface material out from the rougher samples prior to delivery to the on-board science systems, CheMin and SAM).

The reach tests for the robot arm are designed to test the arm based on a range of calibration motions carried out on Earth intended to approximate how the arm should work on Mars. The tests are important because the arm, with the mass of the turret on the end, has only been operated in Earth’s gravity and engineers need to confirm that the arm is actually functioning as anticipated in the lower Martian gravity environment and after both an 8-month cruise through interplanetary space and the rough dynamics of the EDL phase of the mission. Adjustments carried out as a result of the reach tests will allow the arm and turret to be operated with the degree of precision required for the forthcoming science elements of the mission.

The Trivia Report I Forgot

On some of these MSL reports, I’ve published a small piece of trivia about the mission. One that I had lined-up, but then missed Pressing, was that fact that among all the science hardware on Curiosity there is … a 1909 Lincoln VOB penny.

The penny is part of the calibration target for MAHLI, which is mounted on the front of the rover’s body. The target also includes colour chips, a metric standardised bar graphic, and (just below the penny) a stair-step pattern for depth calibration.

The penny itself is a nod to geologists’ tradition of placing a coin or other object of known scale as a size reference in close-up photographs of rocks, and it gives the public a familiar object for perceiving size easily when it will be viewed by MAHLI on Mars. The coin  was supplied by MAHLI’s principal investigator, Ken Edgett, and was minted to mark the centennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth.

Also on the calibration target is an image of “Joe the Martian”. This is also from Ken Edgett, and is actually his own creation, first drawn when he was nine years old when the NASA Viking missions in the 1970s inspired him to want to become a planetary researcher. The character was later used in a children’s science periodical, Red Planet Connection when Edgett directed the Mars outreach program at Arizona State University in the 1990s.

Both the penny and the character are designed to engage public interest in the mission, and both will be imaged throughout Curiosity’s operations on Mars, allowing people to see how weathered they become over time due to exposure to the Martian environment.

Taking a Look Underneath

On Sol 34 (Sept 9) MAHLI was used to take a series of images looking underneath the rover’s belly, allowing engineers to take a first-hand look at the overall condition of the wheels and underside of the vehicle and confirm there is no hidden damage which might cause problems later.

These images also help demonstrate the extreme flexibility of MAHLI, which can image objects from as close as 2.1 cm (just under an inch) right out to infinity, allowing it to be used for close-in precise work related to surface science, and for producing more general images which can be used in a range of activities from confirming the rover’s status through to helping to plan for the drive to “Mount Sharp”.

Taken together, the MAHLI images are remarkable because no other planetary or robotic mission has been able to image itself so comprehensively. Being able to do so not only assists engineers in assessing the rover’s condition throughout the mission, it helps to further engage public interest in what Curiosity is doing by “personalising” the images it can return from Mars.

Curiosity reports in this blog

Images courtesy of NASA / JPL.

In my last round-up on news from the Mars Science Laboratory briefings, only Pressed earlier today, I made mention of Curiosity testing the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), mounted on the science systems  turret at the end of the robot arm, and taking some self-portraits during the initial 6-day calibration and check-out period for the robot arm and the science instruments.

Little did I realise the first such picture had actually already been taken!

The image was captured as the Mastcam took pictures of Curiosity’s turret on Sol 29, and captured a shot of MAHLI in order to check the dust cover over MAHLI’s sensitive lens, and ascertain the amount of dust on it and whether the dust would post a problem when the cover is finally opened.

The MAHLI image was taken at around the same time, and is hazy due to the protective cover, which is in place at the time the image was taken, being covered by a thin film of dust thrown-up during the landing phase of the mission covering it.

This is liable to be the first of a series of remarkable and unique series of images from Curiosity.

Curiosity reports in this blog

Images courtesy of NASA / JPL.

This last week marked Curiosity’s first month on Mars. It’s been a remarkable period, with the rover undergoing an extensive commissioning period (which will continue into next month, most likely), and returning some of the most amazing images from the surface of Mars we’ve ever seen.

Now the trek has begun, and Curiosity is well and truly on her way to Glenelg, a journey of some 400 metres (1300ft) which should be completed in October.

The trek to Glenelg began in earnest on Sol 24, with Curiosity travelling 21 metres (70 feet) – its longest single drive at that time – heading eastward away from Bradbury Landing. The following day, Sol 25 (August 31st), the rover had a “day off” from driving, which was spent  gathering environmental data and sky images using the Navcam system. Mastcam was also used to capture a 360-degree panorama of its new location.

Over the next few days, the rover continued to trek eastward, covering 30 metres (98 feet) on September 1st, in a drive to test its “visual odometry” in using images captured by the Navcam system to analyse the distance it has travelled. The day included further tests of CheMin system, while SAM took samples of the Martian air overnight on the 2nd/3rd Sept (Sol 27/28). The drive then resumed, with Curiosity covering over 30 metres (100ft) on Sol 29, including a manoeuvre to skirt sand.

Arm Flexing

Having travelled a little under the quarter of the distance to Glenelg, Curiosity halted progress to commence the first six of ten planned consecutive days checking-out the robot arm and its turret of equipment. These will see the arm extensively tested through a series of “teach points” established during testing on Earth, and will include activities such as moving the turret to the inlet ports on the rover’s body to simulate the delivery of sample material to the on-board analytical instruments. The purpose of the tests is for mission engineers to get a better understanding for how the arm functions after the long cruise to Mars and in the different temperature and gravity environments of Mars when compared to the calibration testing carried out on Earth.

These operations – which form part of the overall arc of “characterisation tests” designed to check-out the rover and its range of science equipment and capabilities – were sequenced into the drive to Glenelg following the rover’s arrival on Mars. They require that Curiosity be parked at a specific angle relative to the sun, and on flat ground, which it reached on its Sol 29 drive.

During the calibration tests, the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), a camera mounted on the turret, will be tested and calibrated, as will the Alpha X-ray Spectrometer. The arm’s ability to place instruments against rock samples will also be tested as the first steps in preparing the turret for drilling and soil sample collection activities as a part of its science mission.

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NASA’s Trekkin’
Across Gale Crater’s plains,
On rover Curiosity, run by JPL.
NASA’s Trekkin’
Across Gale Crater’s plains
Boldly seeking science, what wonders will it tell?

(To the tune of “Star Trekkin'”)

Singing to us from Mars

The recent broadcast from Mars of a recorded message by NASA Administrator Charles Bolden (Monday 27th August) was followed on Tuesday the 28th by a more ambitious broadcast, designed to be an inspirational fanfare from Mars to encourage young people to get involved in science, technology and engineering.

Written by Will.i.am, Reach for the Stars is the first-ever song written on Earth and transmitted from the surface of another planet. Opening with the lines “Why do they say the sky’s the limit / When I see the footprints on the Moon?”. The song was originally written in February 2012, but following a meeting with NASA representatives, Will.i.am undertook to rework elements of the piece. “I don’t think it’s the right thing to do by sending a computer beat to Mars, so I wanted to put an orchestra together to show human collaboration,” he explained when talking about the song’s evolution. “That robot is going to Mars, but a piece of humanity, of art, should go with it as well.”

As well as an orchestral arrangement for the music, the song features children singing the verse. The entertainer, well-known for his advocacy of science and technology education through his i.am.angel Foundation, said the debut of the song, transmitted from Gale Crater and played during a NASA special event, is a message of inspiration. “Today is about inspiring young people to lead a life without limits placed on their potential,” he said. “And to pursue collaboration between humanity and technology.”

Stereo View

Also on the 28th (Sol 22) Curiosity departed Bradbury Landing on its longest drive to date. Travelling some 16 metres (52 feet) eastwards, the rover stopped at another of the scour marks created by the descent engines as they blasted the Martian “topsoil” away to expose the rock below.

The rover was due to spend around a full Sol at the spot, using the Mastcam to collect a further set of images of the mission’s ultimate driving destination, the lower slopes of “Mount Sharp”. These images, once received on Earth, will be combined with images already gathered from the last location the rover occupied, some 10 metres (33 feet) away, to produce 3D images of the mound, which should help planners determine potential driving routes up the slopes as well as furnishing more information about the surface features and mesas themselves.

After this, on Sol 24 (August 30th), it is expected the rover will be commanded to start its traverse to Glenelg, an intersection of three terrain types some 400 metres (1300ft) from Bradbury Landing. “We are on our way, though Glenelg is still many weeks away,” said Curiosity Project Scientist John Grotzinger, following the initial move to the second scour mark.

One of the reasons a relatively “close” destination is “weeks” away is that mission personnel hope to find a suitable area in which the rover’s robot arm can be further tested, particularly the scoop system which will be used to gather soil samples for analysis. Should a suitable area be found, it is likely the rover will pause there for at least a week while the robot are is further calibrated and the scoop system tested.

There is also a possibility that the drill system and the MAHLI (Mars Hand Lens Imager, the camera mounted on the robot arm’s turret) may be tested en route to Glenelg, should a suitable opportunity arise, although testing of both may not take place until the rover reaches Glenelg.

Curiosity reports in this blog

Monday August 27th saw NASA host another news briefing on Curiosity’s progress, which included some amazing new images and well as updates on SAM and recent manoeuvrings with the rover.

The briefing started with a message “from Mars”, in the form of a recording of a greeting by NASA Administrator and former astronaut, Charles Bowden. Carried by Curiosity to Mars and then transmitted back to Earth, the message, lasting just over a minute, represents the first broadcast of a human voice from another planet. While primarily of PR value, the broadcast demonstrated the capabilities available with the rover working with (in particular) the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) when transferring large amounts of data to Earth; the speech represented some 4 megabits of voice data, which was transmitted alongside other information. As it is, in just three weeks, Curiosity has returned more data to Earth than the entire Pathfinder and MER rover missions combined.

SAM takes a Sniff

SAM, the Sample Analysis at Mars, is a suite of instruments designed to analyse organics and gases from both atmospheric and solid samples. On Saturday August 25th SAM was allowed to take its first sample of the Martian air, albeit as an engineering calibration exercise rather than a science experiment. After a slight “blip” in the proceedings when traces of calibration gas which should have been evacuated from the system beforehand were measured rather than Martian air, the tests successfully confirmed SAM’s atmospheric sampling capabilities are ready for action. In the future SAM will not only be able to sniff the air (and “taste” samples of Martian rock and soil delivered to it by the robot arm), it should even be able to tell us what Mars smells like (which, given it is thought Gale Crater has levels of sulphur dioxide present, is liable to be, “Ewww! Rotten eggs!”).

Mastcam Demonstrates its Power

The two Mastcam cameras (M100 (telephoto) and M34 (wide-angle)) have almost completed their characterisation check-outs and the Malin Space Science Systems team is getting ready to turn them over to the MSL science team for the start of science operations. Key to this work has been ensuring the cameras are properly focused, a process that has required using the both camera lenses to take high-resolution images across a range of distances. This has resulted in some amazing mosaics of Gale Crater being produced.

In the above image, Mastcam reveals Gale Crater: the grit-like surface on which the rover sits extends outwards to the South-west for about 125m (406ft), and is followed by a slight dip in the land that extends a further 105m (341ft) from the rover to the lip of a small crater about 20m (65ft) across. Beyond the rim of the crater can be seen what is described as a low-lying “moat” surrounding the flanks of “Mount Sharp”, the middle of which is about 3.7km (2.3 miles) from the rover. Beyond this is a field of sand dunes some 5.5km (3.4 miles) distant, with the base slopes of the mound just beyond them. The regions the science team are particularly interested in extend from about 6.6km (4 miles) from the rover out to about 10.7km (6.7 miles).

The image above shows a zoomed-in view of the region of interest, with the dune field in the immediate foreground. The inset image is of a rock roughly the size of Curiosity (the black dot in the inset image), pictured to hep give a sense of scale to the mesas, and show what the rover might look like if it could be pictured from Bradbury Landing once it starts exploring “Mount Sharp”.

While the area of interest is only 10km (6 miles) from Bradbury Landing, it would take Curiosity 100 days to reach it, were it to drive at full speed – which is obviously not what is going to happen, as there is much to study along the way.

On August 27th, NASA released a panoramic movie of Gale Crater and “Mount Sharp” put together using images from the Mastcam captured on the 8th and 18th August (prior to the focus calibrations being completed). The images have been white-balanced to match sunlight levels on earth, with 640×360 and 1280×720 Quick Time version of the movie available on the JPL website (note the 1280 movie is over 242Mb in size and may take time to download and stream).

Continue reading “Curiosity: speaking from Mars” →