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Unmanned Spaceflight.com _ Opportunity _ Last stops around Victoria, before the Long Trek

Posted by: Tesheiner Sep 27 2008, 10:41 AM

Let's use this topic for the last stops (Cabo Frio, perhaps?) before Opportunity leave the vicinity of Victoria for good.

Posted by: Tesheiner Sep 27 2008, 10:48 AM

This is a guess, but I'm pretty sure we'll stop at Cabo Frio before leaving. Paolo?

Posted by: RoverDriver Sep 27 2008, 07:04 PM

QUOTE (Tesheiner @ Sep 27 2008, 02:48 AM) *
This is a guess, but I'm pretty sure we'll stop at Cabo Frio before leaving. Paolo?



I hope not. Today's plan is somewhat more ambitious. I don't want to jinx it, I have a few more hours to wait. I will keep you posted.

Paolo

Posted by: mhoward Sep 27 2008, 07:36 PM

Well that's intriguing smile.gif

Seems like a long time since we've seen drive-direction mosaics like this:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/marscat/2892292119/sizes/l/

Looking south, even... it brings a smile to my face.



Posted by: mhoward Sep 27 2008, 07:38 PM

Here is a http://mmb.unmannedspaceflight.com/MERBSol1661Navcam.mov (2.1MB), just because the scene is so beautiful.

Posted by: centsworth_II Sep 27 2008, 07:41 PM

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Sep 27 2008, 03:04 PM) *
Today's plan is somewhat more ambitious.

I wonder if "Last stops around Victoria, before the Long Trek" is destined to be a very short thread.

Posted by: ngunn Sep 27 2008, 08:41 PM

QUOTE (mhoward @ Sep 27 2008, 08:38 PM) *
the scene is so beautiful.


It sure is - and thanks very much for making it so real for us. An emotional moment, it reminds me of our first glimpse in.

Posted by: ilbasso Sep 27 2008, 08:53 PM

Enjoy the scenery while it lasts, kids, we're about to start driving across Kansas!

Posted by: Tesheiner Sep 27 2008, 09:10 PM

QUOTE (centsworth_II @ Sep 27 2008, 09:41 PM) *
I wonder if "Last stops around Victoria, before the Long Trek" is destined to be a very short thread.

This idea crossed my mind at the right moment I opened the thread. laugh.gif Then I said "no way, Cabo Frio is a mandatory stop!", but now after Paolo's comments I'm not sure of anything. Will we see one of those 100m drives today?

Posted by: nprev Sep 27 2008, 09:23 PM

That is indeed beautiful, and thank you for the gift, MH. smile.gif

Inspiring as well, and for those who don't care for poetry, my apologies in advance:

Leaving Victoria

The horizon has never been featureless
and now we must leave the layers
of the mysterious past, for our limitations stop us now
but only now
for all life is short, and we must leave.

This alien place, this new home
must be seen, must be touched as much as possible
and the distant cliffs beckon, there is no resistance
Victoria gives us up willingly, for we are strangers still

Onward, for as long as we can
Onward, through dunes and cold and penetrating frosty dust
Onward, past cobbles and meteorites
Onward, till the power is gone, and our vision grows dim...

Someday we will stand static and alone, but not forever
and never now
we go onward, and see what must be seen
we go
now

Posted by: Phil Stooke Sep 27 2008, 09:30 PM

What is it with all these poets? Well, if they can do it so can I.


There once was a rover called Oppy,
Whose aiming once got a bit sloppy.
Things got rather gory
Inside Purgatory,
But now she is driving non-stoppy.



Philliam Shakespeare

Posted by: nprev Sep 27 2008, 09:37 PM

laugh.gif ...LOVE it!!!!

(BTW, Phil, still waiting on that damn mascot job to open up for your school...I've switched to even cheaper cigars!!!)

Posted by: Shaka Sep 27 2008, 11:20 PM

4,245,000 bottles of beer on the wall...4,245,000 bottles of beer...

Posted by: RoverDriver Sep 28 2008, 12:40 AM

QUOTE (Tesheiner @ Sep 27 2008, 01:10 PM) *
This idea crossed my mind at the right moment I opened the thread. laugh.gif Then I said "no way, Cabo Frio is a mandatory stop!", but now after Paolo's comments I'm not sure of anything. Will we see one of those 100m drives today?


Not really. Almost 153 meters straight south. Don't be alarmed, there will be no imaging today, we'll have to wait one more day to get them. One of the tricks we will probably use during this adventure.

Paolo

Posted by: PDP8E Sep 28 2008, 04:27 AM


there once was a rover, quite clever
who was in Victoria forever
then one day she popped out
and aligned to the south
for Squires had said...Endeavour!

Posted by: Tesheiner Sep 28 2008, 06:50 AM

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Sep 28 2008, 02:40 AM) *
Almost 153 meters straight south.

Oh boy! blink.gif
Should I change the thread's name to "Running around Victoria before the Long Trek"? smile.gif

Posted by: djellison Sep 28 2008, 09:39 AM

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Sep 28 2008, 01:40 AM) *
One of the tricks we will probably use during this adventure.


Ahhh ( going onto guess mode )

Driving limited perhaps by time rather than power - so if you forgo the imaging at the end of the drive before stopping for the PM UHF pass, you can get more drive time into the schedule.

Do this when on restricted sols and you can pre-estimate Sol N+2's drive from engineering and HiRISE - and give it a go/no go when you get the post drive imaging on Sol N+1

Just guessing smile.gif

Doug

Posted by: RoverDriver Sep 28 2008, 12:27 PM

Wow, you are so good! Your first guess is 100% correct. The second is currently incorrect. Before we move the rover there is minimum set o data we need to receive before we are allowed to drive again. Front and Rear Hazcams is one of these products. Therefore this trick can only be currently applied on weekends.

We are trying to relax the risk posture, but it will take time to understand what we can relax and still maintain the vehicle safe. This drive had one component that was relaxed which I think it will be accepted. I'm sure we will need to come up with many tricks to get to Endeavour before the juice runs out.

Paolo

Posted by: BrianL Sep 28 2008, 04:17 PM

Paolo, given the relative safety of the current driving surface, have you considered going for a new single drive record, which I believe is currently 220 meters?

Posted by: Tesheiner Sep 28 2008, 04:18 PM

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Sep 28 2008, 02:27 PM) *
Therefore this trick can only be currently applied on weekends.

That was my guess. smile.gif

Posted by: RoverDriver Sep 28 2008, 05:07 PM

QUOTE (BrianL @ Sep 28 2008, 08:17 AM) *
Paolo, given the relative safety of the current driving surface, have you considered going for a new single drive record, which I believe is currently 220 meters?


I'm sure all rover drivers are thinking about it smile.gif but (I hope) we are disciplined enough to think about the goal which is not beating the record but to get to Endeavour.

Paolo

Posted by: Bobby Sep 28 2008, 10:32 PM

I agree with you Tescheiner. I think it would be fun going around Victoria but we do need to start
our journey South.

What areas along the West side or Southern part of Victoria might be good places to go to and
what area south of Victoria should we stop at to explore??? First targets?

Posted by: RoverDriver Sep 28 2008, 10:36 PM

QUOTE (Bobby @ Sep 28 2008, 02:32 PM) *
I agree with you Tescheiner. I think it would be fun going around Victoria but we do need to start
our journey South.

What areas along the West side or Southern part of Victoria might be good places to go to and
what area south of Victoria should we stop at to explore??? First targets?


We have received indicaions for a couple of spots in VC rim in the west and SW. The first stopover is about 150-200m SE of where the rover currently is. The next stopover is about 300m SE of the first stop. After these two locations, I have no indications whether there will be additional stops or is we are fre to leave VC.

Paolo

Posted by: Bobby Sep 28 2008, 10:53 PM

Thanks Paolo for the information.

Since I'm not into drawing overhead shots of Victoria.

I hope one of our computer drawing guru's in here might determine
which area of Victoria is the 1rst target Paola said is 150 to 200 meters SE
of our current location and the 2nd target which is 300 meters SE of where
we are?

cool.gif

Posted by: Astro0 Sep 28 2008, 11:50 PM

This is like a treasure hunt or playing "Where's Opportunity?" smile.gif ... head south 153m, then southeast for 150-200m and find a target southeast 300m of your first position.
OK, so without taking a massive leap across an unnamed 'bay', I guess that with a few turns we'd end up somewhere here (?)
Any location along this part of VC will produce great views (oh, and of course 'great science').
I'd especially like a view across that large slumped area. Plus the view back along VC to Duck Bay will be spectacular!
Anywhere really....Go Oppy!



Astro0

Posted by: BrianL Sep 29 2008, 12:23 AM

Astro0, I took Paolo's comments to mean:

Go 150-200 m and stop.
Go 300 m beyond that and stop.

Paolo?


Posted by: RoverDriver Sep 29 2008, 02:10 AM

QUOTE (Astro0 @ Sep 28 2008, 03:50 PM) *
This is like a treasure hunt or playing "Where's Opportunity?" smile.gif ... head south 153m, then southeast for 150-200m and find a target southeast 300m of your first position.
OK, so without taking a massive leap across an unnamed 'bay', I guess that with a few turns we'd end up somewhere here (?)
Any location along this part of VC will produce great views (oh, and of course 'great science').
I'd especially like a view across that large slumped area. Plus the view back along VC to Duck Bay will be spectacular!
Anywhere really....Go Oppy!



Astro0


I apologize if I gave the wrong distances, I was roughly quoting from memory. On the image above, the end of your tracks are exactly at the second (and last) imaging location at VC. The first location is at the edge of the rim just above the 150 marker.

Paolo

Posted by: Astro0 Sep 29 2008, 02:23 AM

Thanks Paolo.
I thought my guess might be right. smile.gif
My "inner explorer" told me that this particular cape would be a good science-stop and would be the last(?) stop on Oppy's VC journey.
Bring on the trek to Endeavour....we're with you ALL the way.

Astro0

Posted by: ElkGroveDan Sep 29 2008, 02:24 AM

QUOTE (Astro0 @ Sep 28 2008, 05:42 PM) *
Let's say it's 200m SE and then another 300m SE, then anywhere along these two lines and yellow arcs could be the destinations.


I'd be really surprised if they would do a 150 meter drive that close to the edge of the crater. Paolo? What are the rules?

Posted by: RoverDriver Sep 29 2008, 02:42 AM

QUOTE (ElkGroveDan @ Sep 28 2008, 06:24 PM) *
I'd be really surprised if they would do a 150 meter drive that close to the edge of the crater. Paolo? What are the rules?


There are no rules! smile.gif No cops, no "traffic patrolled by aircraft", wait a minute! We are patrolled from above! I better slow down! ;-)

Seriously, the tracks Astro0 posted are way too close to the rim. When we approach a target on a crater we align to the target by staying at a safe distance (a few 10s of meters) then dedicate one or two drives to the approach depending on how critical the position is and how close to the rim we need to be. This might mean a longer route, but quicker. And as everyone who has walked the hills of San Francisco has found, the straight line might not be the easiest, quickest, requires less energy or even possible.

Paolo

Posted by: Astro0 Sep 29 2008, 02:48 AM

Paolo - "Seriously, the tracks Astro0 posted are way too close to the rim."

Hey, I didn't say that I knew how to drive blink.gif but I do know where we are going! smile.gif

Astro0

Posted by: CosmicRocker Sep 29 2008, 03:15 AM

Good hunch there, EGD. smile.gif

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Sep 28 2008, 08:10 PM) *
... On the image above, the end of your tracks are exactly at the second (and last) imaging location at VC. The first location is at the edge of the rim just above the 150 marker.
hmm...That looks like a good set up to do one more long baseline stereo pair. If so, it would be nice if it could be done in color.

I'd also suspect that if the second stop on the rim is the last, that afterward, the route would go pretty much directly south from there.

Posted by: RoverDriver Sep 29 2008, 03:25 AM

QUOTE (CosmicRocker @ Sep 28 2008, 07:15 PM) *
Good hunch there, EGD. smile.gif

hmm...That looks like a good set up to do one more long baseline stereo pair. If so, it would be nice if it could be done in color.

I'd also suspect that if the second stop on the rim is the last, that afterward, the route would go pretty much directly south from there.


I haven't heard any mention of superres or WBS on the first target.

Paolo

Posted by: CosmicRocker Sep 29 2008, 05:11 AM

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Sep 28 2008, 09:25 PM) *
I haven't heard any mention of superres or WBS on the first target.
Yes. But even if it wasn't planned, we will do it, if we can. The database might announce the intentions. I wasn't expecting superres unless something exceptional was noticed.

We only need overlapping images from those two locations, and it would seem neglectful to not collect more long distance 3D from the SW corner of the crater before Opportunity leaves. But, what do I know.

Posted by: Tesheiner Sep 29 2008, 08:17 AM

QUOTE (djellison @ Sep 28 2008, 11:39 AM) *
Driving limited perhaps by time rather than power - so if you forgo the imaging at the end of the drive before stopping for the PM UHF pass, you can get more drive time into the schedule.

More info on this loooong drive: it started around 12:45 and it took 'til 16:30 to cover those 150m with some stops in the way to confirm "all is well". This one hasn't the record in terms of distance, but perhaps it has the record in terms of driving time.

Posted by: BrianL Sep 29 2008, 12:06 PM

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Sep 28 2008, 12:07 PM) *
(I hope) we are disciplined enough to think about the goal which is not beating the record but to get to Endeavour.


Interesting comment. Perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but it sounds like you are saying that very long drives are not good for the long term mobility of the rover. unsure.gif

Posted by: RoverDriver Sep 29 2008, 01:33 PM

QUOTE (BrianL @ Sep 29 2008, 04:06 AM) *
Interesting comment. Perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but it sounds like you are saying that very long drives are not good for the long term mobility of the rover. unsure.gif


No, I really mean that while trying to do long drives we still maintain the rover safe. The goal is getting there, not die trying to.

Paolo

Posted by: djellison Sep 29 2008, 02:04 PM

QUOTE (BrianL @ Sep 29 2008, 01:06 PM) *
Interesting comment. Perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but it sounds like ...


"How far can we go?" not "Can we go more than 220m?"

Doug

Posted by: Fran Ontanaya Sep 29 2008, 04:42 PM

Please, excuse my ignorance. Would Oppy need to do a cool down stop if it drove for too long?

(I know, it isn't a F1, but the martian air isn't very conductive either.)

Posted by: Tesheiner Sep 29 2008, 08:04 PM

Dunno.
But what I really know is that our fellow rover (or the driver behind wink.gif ) is a little bit "drunk".
Check the wheel marks: http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/rear_hazcam/2008-09-29/1R275911804EFF90%23%23P1312R0M1.JPG

I know, I know! That's deliberately made to ease the work for the autonav (or whatever it's called).

Posted by: djellison Sep 29 2008, 08:08 PM

Drunken sailor walk smile.gif

I don't think the rover motors would overheat. With 900+Whrs during high summer, the WEB may get to an overheating situation ( as happened at the summit of Husband Hill briefly ) - but the rover motors are so exposed that I find it hard to believe they could get warm to the point of being worrying.

Doug

Posted by: climber Sep 29 2008, 08:15 PM

QUOTE (djellison @ Sep 29 2008, 10:08 PM) *
Drunken sailor walk smile.gif
Doug

Realy? I thought it was more eratic. Well, last such drive was over 1 year ago and I don't remember very well. I didn't though we'll ever have to use it for real!
Anyway I guess she'll use lot of this technique for quite a while. I intentionnaly say "she" because I guess we can call this "self navigation" as opposed to "ordered navigation".

Posted by: djellison Sep 29 2008, 08:22 PM

I don't think this was an example of the drunken sailor walk - but that's what they called it when the rover stopped quite regularly to give autonav / visidom something to see.

Doug

Posted by: Bobby Sep 29 2008, 08:37 PM

Are we on a day on/day off schedule for driving now or can we drive everyday?


Posted by: djellison Sep 29 2008, 09:04 PM

I would say at the moment we're on restricted sols.

Doug

Posted by: Phil Stooke Sep 30 2008, 02:17 PM

New maps at JPL, including some new placenames on Victoria's rim:

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/traverse_maps.html

Phil

Posted by: ustrax Sep 30 2008, 04:43 PM

Got some words from SS, on the stops Paolo made reference to, the reason and how much time will Oppy take there?:

"The objective there will be the same as the objective was at our many stops along the northern rim... to image stratigraphy on the opposing cliff faces.

It's hard to predict exactly how long they'll take, but we'll try to get them wrapped up as quickly as possible."

And what about aditional stopovers? Will there be any or are we clear to hit the road after these two?

"You never know... depends on what we find. We're exploring new territory now, and whenever we see something that merits a stop, we'll stop. But we intend to hit the road as soon and as fast as we can."

"hit the road as soon and as fast as we can"
I like the sound of that... smile.gif

Posted by: Bobby Sep 30 2008, 11:54 PM

May October show us Journeys like this daily rolleyes.gif

 

Posted by: tim53 Oct 1 2008, 12:18 AM

QUOTE (Phil Stooke @ Sep 30 2008, 06:17 AM) *
New maps at JPL, including some new placenames on Victoria's rim:

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/traverse_maps.html

Phil


Hi Phil:

Now that we're under way again, and I've got a groovy new tool, I've gone back and corrected all the locations back to the lander. Based on the quality of the overhead projected Navcam pans (at a resolution of 1cm/pixel) and the resolution of the HiRISE mosaic I'm using (25cm/pixel), I can just about "guarantee" the locations are accurate to about a half meter. Next step will be registering the HiRISE mosaic to the Mars control net.

-Tim.
PS: For your perusal

Posted by: Phil Stooke Oct 1 2008, 01:37 AM

That's great, Tim - both the new map and the news that the locations are fixed all the way back to the lander.

Will that full location data set end up in PDS at some point?

Phil

Posted by: ElkGroveDan Oct 1 2008, 03:37 AM

QUOTE (tim53 @ Sep 30 2008, 05:18 PM) *
For your perusal


Well that one sure is a keeper.

Posted by: RoverDriver Oct 1 2008, 03:49 AM

Sol 1666 seems to be one more for the books: ~130m The Penultimate RHAZ is really cool.

Posted by: CosmicRocker Oct 1 2008, 04:52 AM

QUOTE (ElkGroveDan @ Sep 30 2008, 09:37 PM) *
Well that one sure is a keeper.
Sweet... smile.gif ...saved to the hard drive for future reference... wink.gif

I looked everywhere for Paolo's teaser sol 1666 Penultimate RHAZ image. I couldn't even find the thumbnail at this time. sad.gif

Edited: I just remembered that we only find thumbnails of pancams at the pancam tracking database interface. laugh.gif

Posted by: CosmicRocker Oct 1 2008, 05:37 AM

I like the new http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/tm-opportunity/index.html, in concept, but it seems we might still find better ones here. I don't understand why so much of the background HiRise resolution is obscured. Was something lost in translation to jpg?

Posted by: Tman Oct 1 2008, 08:12 AM

If you refer to the third map, only the middle one is in full resolution maybe fading a bit due to colorizing or less sharpening.

Super this new concept!

Posted by: Stu Oct 1 2008, 10:04 AM

(Stu leans out of car window...)

Hey, guys! Look over there!!



( EDIT: wider angle view http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v509/cumbriansky/VictoriaFarsideOct0108-sh.jpg)

Posted by: climber Oct 1 2008, 11:36 AM

QUOTE (Stu @ Oct 1 2008, 12:04 PM) *
(Stu leans out of car window...)
Hey, guys! Look over there!!
( EDIT: wider angle view http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v509/cumbriansky/VictoriaFarsideOct0108-sh.jpg)

Stu, did I ever told you that you're at 3D's what Eduardo is at Oppy's route map? smile.gif
Thanks so much, this view is very very inspiring and I guess we've gona miss it pretty soon smile.gif or sad.gif ???
But anyway, when one get a 22' screen, the original post is much better than a wider angle that take only half of the screen biggrin.gif


Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 1 2008, 11:40 AM

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Oct 1 2008, 05:49 AM) *
Sol 1666 seems to be one more for the books: ~130m The Penultimate RHAZ is really cool.

Here it is, with a bit of gamma correction because the http://nasa.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/rear_hazcam/2008-10-01/1R276096911EFF90%23%23P1301R0M1.JPGis too dark, at least the JPEG.

Posted by: ustrax Oct 1 2008, 11:56 AM

The middle of a working week, a beautiful day outside,
and here I am, stranded at home, after catching a cold on a funeral... blink.gif

And then Stu takes me to Mars and puts me in the rim of a crater, with this breathtaking scenario and with little cobbles around for me to kick...
This is what friends are for... biggrin.gif
Brilliant!

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 1 2008, 12:15 PM

Q & D polar projection of the navcam mosaic taken on sol 1664.
We can see Cape Verde almost to the N (top) and "Cape Pillar" to the ENE.


Posted by: MahFL Oct 1 2008, 01:04 PM

Did Oppy just drive 283 meters in two drives ?

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 1 2008, 01:10 PM

Give or take a few meters, depending on if we are talking about net distance or "odometer", but the answer is basically YES!!!!
wheel.gif wheel.gif wheel.gif

Now, wait a minute!

QUOTE
As of sol 1653 (Sept. 17, 2008), Opportunity's total odometry was 11,796.22 meters (7.33 miles)

That means we have already crossed the 12km mark!!!

Posted by: ustrax Oct 1 2008, 01:14 PM

QUOTE (MahFL @ Oct 1 2008, 02:04 PM) *
Did Oppy just drive 283 meters in two drives ?


Only 11.717 to go! smile.gif

Cool to know that if Oppy kept this average (141.5) everysol she would arrive Endeavour in 82 sols! blink.gif
I'm deliberately not taking into account that we're not driving in a straight path towards the crater...but, optimist as I am I see the 2 year drive as a very conservative timeline... rolleyes.gif

Posted by: RoverDriver Oct 1 2008, 01:24 PM

I tried to correct the penultimate rhaz. Here it is.

Paolo


 

Posted by: djellison Oct 1 2008, 01:27 PM

QUOTE (ustrax @ Oct 1 2008, 02:14 PM) *
if Oppy kept this average (141.5) everysol


It took 5 sols to cover that distance. Not two. Two drives - but five sols.

And this is just about the best driving terrain we'll ever have, and we wont have it for long ( at this pace biggrin.gif ).

A fast couple of months, then it's going to be painfull.

Posted by: Toma B Oct 1 2008, 03:02 PM

QUOTE (djellison @ Oct 1 2008, 03:27 PM) *
It took 5 sols to cover that distance. Not two. Two drives - but five sols.

I'm not moaning but:
Do you know why it took 5 days?
Restricted sols can explain 3 days instead of 2 ,and isn't MRO started relaying data from MERs?
Can there be a "restricted sol" with 2 orbiters relaying data?
Anyway.....these last 2 drives were just great. wheel.gif rolleyes.gif

Posted by: tim53 Oct 1 2008, 03:12 PM

QUOTE (CosmicRocker @ Sep 30 2008, 09:37 PM) *
I like the new http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/tm-opportunity/index.html, in concept, but it seems we might still find better ones here. I don't understand why so much of the background HiRise resolution is obscured. Was something lost in translation to jpg?


The file with "25cm" in the filename is at the full resolution of the HiRISE mosaic. The Navcam overhead is rendered at 1cm/pixel for the planning tool, but unless folks can open something like Jpeg 2000 format, putting a 1cm/pixel zoom of the map on the rover website would be difficult. Easy to produce, though.

-Tim.

Posted by: tim53 Oct 1 2008, 03:26 PM

I averaged the distance we covered between the heatshield and Purgatory, and came up with something like 30m/day, which includes weekends and sols we stayed for science purposes. Between Purgatory and Beagle Crater, our average slowed to less than 15m/day.

But things are different now. We have this awesome HiRISE coverage (which, in a few days will be complete all the way past Endeavor's west rim) to help us plan our route through, or around the "purgatoids" south of Victoria. After about 3-5km of slogging through fields of purgatoids, the ripples drop off in size dramatically (and we go down a broad 60 meter slope), and so far as I can tell at this point, the surface should look more like the plains around Endurance than the ripple fields we've been dealing with around the Victoria annulus.

-Tim.

Posted by: djellison Oct 1 2008, 03:26 PM

QUOTE (Toma B @ Oct 1 2008, 04:02 PM) *
Can there be a "restricted sol" with 2 orbiters relaying data?


MRO isn't doing MER relay at the moment as I understand it.

Restricted sols are not a symptom of relay schedules however. Odyssey will usually get a good pass in most days at about 4pm, MRO would get one (if used ) at about 3pm local.

The restriction is a symptom of rover-night and pasadena-day being out of sync. i.e. you have to start planning for Sol N+1 before you have the data for Sol N. Sol N's data can only be used for planning Sol N+2

So - as a result, everything sort of takes twice as long as you might expect. Tie that in with the fact that they didn't get post-drive imagery down until the sol AFTER the first drive, then you can see how the days add up.

Posted by: BrianL Oct 1 2008, 03:36 PM

QUOTE (djellison @ Oct 1 2008, 08:27 AM) *
A fast couple of months, then it's going to be painfull.


No, it's going to be wonderful. We have a long term goal again and we should savour each and every day that we are given to share on this journey. There will be days of tension and exhilaration, of confusion and outright boredom. We will see frustration for both the "Why are we stopping to look at this?" and the "Why didn't we stop to look at that?" crowds. I picture Tesheiner hunched over at his computer peering at polar projections and trying to match them up to HiRISE pictures to plot locations. I see anaglyphs from Stu of every rock and ripple we pass, with the occasional poem tossed in to keep things in the proper perspective. Our many route mappers will continue to show Paolo and the other drivers the way, and occasionally there will be instances where they will appear to have followed our advice. The image magicians will poke and prod at the handful of pixels that are the distant rim segments to try and pull details out. There might even be another beacon.

82 days? I'm looking forward to months of free entertainment. It doesn't get any better than this.

Posted by: Stu Oct 1 2008, 03:38 PM

Okay...

I've been working on this for a while, time to set it free...

Some of you will like it, some of you will hate it. Fair enough. It's what I feel. smile.gif


ENDEAVOUR CALLS…

What once was a beguiling, beckoning bowl –
A gargoyle-edged hole carved in the great
Meridiani Plain – is now falling far behind;
A rapidly-thinning line drawn between the high
Cathedral dome of Mars’ pastel-pink sky
And the pebble-spattered, track-trenched
Ground. What we found down there,
On the cliff-shadowed slopes of fair Victoria
Made us stop and stare in wonder:
Rocks sculpted into sheaths of brittle, broken blades
By millennia of dust-drenched wind;
Slanting shafts of sunlight shining
On the sea of sand dunes at its heart;
Book-leaf layers of ancient stone, glowing
Amber and gold as twilight faded to night…
What memories we leave behind..!

But on the flat and far horizon now
A new adventure calls, and if the fates allow,
If an already-weary rover’s battered body
Can somehow find the strength to carry on
For one more stolen year, one sol Opportunity will hear
Us scream and shout out in delight at the impossible sight
Of Endeavour’s Mordor hills looming up before her eyes.
And then, content, we will smile, re-living each heroic mile
Before telling Oppy “That’s far enough. Rest now, little one,
Your work is done.” And then, at last, she’ll sleep
A deep and dreaming sleep, with History as her pillow.
And here on Earth we’ll celebrate a noble rover’s
Journey across the endless dry and rippled sea
of the Great Plain of Meridiani.

© Stuart Atkinson 2008

Posted by: mhoward Oct 1 2008, 04:02 PM

I love it, Stu.

Tim53, that image is now on my desktop.

The Navcam view on Sol 1666 is iconic. Here is a http://mmb.unmannedspaceflight.com/MERBSol1666Navcam.mov (1.7 MB).

The Pancams are also great, but I'll let somebody else deal with those...




Posted by: djellison Oct 1 2008, 04:08 PM

QUOTE (BrianL @ Oct 1 2008, 04:36 PM) *
No, it's going to be wonderful.


Yeah, you were not here for Purgatory ripple. The adventure is wonderfull. The journey great, but, some of the footsteps can be very very painfull indeed.

Show of hands for those who enjoyed the stop-over at Purgatory and Olympia......wow - no hands biggrin.gif

I see what you're saying - but it's not going to be like a path of joy the entire way.

Doug

Posted by: centsworth_II Oct 1 2008, 04:20 PM

QUOTE (djellison @ Oct 1 2008, 11:08 AM) *
I see what you're saying - but it's not going to be like a path of joy the entire way.

Aren't you optimistic that Opportunity's new roving software will really shine and allow for a nearly trouble-free trip? Certainly no Purgatorys will be allowed. Maybe an aborted drive every now and then. One is not crazy to hope for this much, no?

Posted by: marsophile Oct 1 2008, 04:23 PM

http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/navcam/2008-09-30/1N275912756EFF90%23%23P1818L0M2.JPG

Any idea what the odd feature in the sky (top left) is?

Posted by: ustrax Oct 1 2008, 04:25 PM

QUOTE (djellison @ Oct 1 2008, 05:08 PM) *
I see what you're saying - but it's not going to be like a path of joy the entire way.


Great words from BrianL...
Wonderful indeed, each and every one of us as part of the original Endeavour crew, facing challenges and delighting us with moments of pure beauty, exploring unroved ground...
The journey...the journey! Not the arrival! smile.gif

Doug, it could not possibly be a path of joy the entire way...because, simply, that is not the nature of the Epics! smile.gif

Of course we can think that getting stucked for too many sols is a dreadful think to happen but...at this distance...would the road to Victoria have been the same without Purgatory? Doug, it could not possibly be a path of joy the entire way...because, simply, that is not the nature of the Epics! These require Drama! smile.gif

EDITED: Stu, fantastic poem, but..."rest now little one..."?!
I thought you had learned something in the last days about Oppy's powers to surprise us...by then she'll be, not trekking, but flying her way out of Endeavour...

marsophile...looks like the first martian attempt to launch a rover towards Earth was successful! wink.gif

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 1 2008, 04:28 PM

QUOTE (mhoward @ Oct 1 2008, 06:02 PM) *
The Pancams are also great, but I'll let somebody else deal with those...

I can only do a quick stitch of that mosaic.


This was a "drive direction" mosaic, meaning that the plan is to go on that direction. "Cape Victoria" might be our next stop and the view from here towards Cabo Frio, Verde, St Mary should be impressive.

Posted by: Ant103 Oct 1 2008, 04:38 PM

Yes, it should be smile.gif

360 degree view on Sol 1664 (anyone is thirsty biggrin.gif) :
http://www.db-prods.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/sol1664-pano.jpg

And the 1666 non-complete view, the same as the -beautiful- Michael Howard pan smile.gif
http://www.db-prods.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/sol1666-navcampano.jpg

Posted by: stewjack Oct 1 2008, 04:54 PM

QUOTE (marsophile @ Oct 1 2008, 11:23 AM) *
http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/navcam/2008-09-30/1N275912756EFF90%23%23P1818L0M2.JPG

Any idea what the odd feature in the sky (top left) is?


It looks like the antenna on my desktop weather alert radio. I don't actually believe that is what it is, but I wanted to get the ball rolling. rolleyes.gif

Jack

Posted by: climber Oct 1 2008, 05:12 PM

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Oct 1 2008, 03:24 PM) *
I tried to correct the penultimate rhaz. Here it is.
Paolo

Thanks Paolo, so you're not only driving, you can manage imagery!
Well, anyway, I'll be more confortable if you stay focused in the drive dirrection instead of the rear biggrin.gif

Posted by: climber Oct 1 2008, 05:29 PM

QUOTE (ustrax @ Oct 1 2008, 06:25 PM) *
The journey...the journey! Not the arrival! smile.gif

Endeavour is SO big that even when we'll "arrive", we'll not be there yet. From now on, it's going to be ONLY a journey Rui, only a journey smile.gif

Posted by: Paolo Amoroso Oct 1 2008, 06:05 PM

QUOTE (climber @ Oct 1 2008, 07:12 PM) *
Well, anyway, I'll be more confortable if you stay focused in the drive dirrection instead of the rear biggrin.gif

At times it's safer or easier for the rovers to drive backwards.


Paolo Amoroso

Posted by: RoverDriver Oct 1 2008, 06:24 PM

QUOTE (climber @ Oct 1 2008, 09:12 AM) *
Thanks Paolo, so you're not only driving, you can manage imagery!
Well, anyway, I'll be more confortable if you stay focused in the drive dirrection instead of the rear biggrin.gif


I am focussed on driving. That specific image was captured to visually inspect the tracks before turning the vehicle to a heading that would maximize uplink to Odyssey.
Knowing what heppened on the previous drive will help in setting up the next one. In this specific image, clean track, no signs of sinkage, Opportunity was sober.

Paolo

Posted by: RoverDriver Oct 1 2008, 06:25 PM

QUOTE (Paolo Amoroso @ Oct 1 2008, 10:05 AM) *
At times it's safer or easier for the rovers to drive backwards.


Paolo Amoroso



True. In what instances it is best to drive backwards?

Paolo

Posted by: djellison Oct 1 2008, 06:45 PM

Uphill, or when either front wheel is locked smile.gif

Posted by: Tman Oct 1 2008, 06:46 PM

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all/1/n/999/1N216872666EFF76ZFP1997R0M1.HTML wink.gif

Posted by: marsophile Oct 1 2008, 06:55 PM

QUOTE (marsophile @ Oct 1 2008, 08:23 AM) *
http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/navcam/2008-09-30/1N275912756EFF90%23%23P1818L0M2.JPG

Any idea what the odd feature in the sky (top left) is?


The feature also appears in

http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/navcam/2008-09-30/1N275912756EFF90%23%23P1818L0M1.JPG

so it is not a cosmic ray hit.

It looks like it could be a rock being blasted into the air on a ballistic trajectory by a nearby meteor strike, however unlikely that may be.

Posted by: djellison Oct 1 2008, 07:01 PM

No - those two images are one and the same - the M1 at the end is the first produced version of that image. If a piece of it doesn't come down, or comes down again, they make an M2 version or M3 etc etc.

http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/navcam/2008-09-30/1N275912756EFF90%23%23P1818R0M1.JPG
and
http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/navcam/2008-09-30/1N275912756EFF90%23%23P1818RL0M1.JPG

Were taken at the same time - and the feature is only in one - so it is an imaging artifact, not a real object.

Posted by: ustrax Oct 1 2008, 07:16 PM

An image artifact?
And here I was thinking that crazy swiss rocketman had made it this far... sad.gif



Are you sure Doug?...
tongue.gif

Posted by: PaulM Oct 1 2008, 07:35 PM

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Oct 1 2008, 07:25 PM) *
True. In what instances it is best to drive backwards?

Paolo


I remember reading that it was thought that one of Spirit's front wheels developed a problem because the front wheels on Rovers are most highly stressed. I thought that for this reason that during Opportunity's trek to Victoria it was decided to alternate between driving forwards and driving backwards every few SOLs to even out the wear on Opportunity's 6 wheels.

Am I correct?

Posted by: centsworth_II Oct 1 2008, 07:43 PM

QUOTE (PaulM @ Oct 1 2008, 02:35 PM) *
...it was decided to alternate between driving forwards and driving backwards every few SOLs to even out the wear on a Rover's 6 wheels.

Because, I think, it ensures even distribution of lubricant.

Posted by: climber Oct 1 2008, 08:33 PM

QUOTE (ustrax @ Oct 1 2008, 09:16 PM) *


The Speedy Turtle striked again...

Posted by: ElkGroveDan Oct 1 2008, 08:55 PM

QUOTE (ustrax @ Oct 1 2008, 12:16 PM) *


I'll say it's a large wooden badger flying off a catapult.



Run away! run away!

Posted by: djellison Oct 1 2008, 08:59 PM

Clearly a donkey leaving a trebuchet.

Posted by: RoverDriver Oct 1 2008, 09:31 PM

QUOTE (PaulM @ Oct 1 2008, 11:35 AM) *
I remember reading that it was thought that one of Spirit's front wheels developed a problem because the front wheels on Rovers are most highly stressed. I thought that for this reason that during Opportunity's trek to Victoria it was decided to alternate between driving forwards and driving backwards every few SOLs to even out the wear on Opportunity's 6 wheels.

Am I correct?


I think that the rocker bogie system is designed to equally distribute the load on all 6 wheels on flat terrain. The reason for switching between forward and backward driving was to equally distribute lubricant and wear.

Paolo

Posted by: RoverDriver Oct 1 2008, 09:32 PM

QUOTE (djellison @ Oct 1 2008, 10:45 AM) *
Uphill, or when either front wheel is locked smile.gif


Correct! I will come up with some more trivia.

Paolo

Posted by: BrianL Oct 1 2008, 09:36 PM

I've been thinking for awhile that Paolo needs a special status more befitting than Junior Member and now I have it...

Quizmaster! wink.gif

Posted by: RoverDriver Oct 1 2008, 09:36 PM

QUOTE (ustrax @ Oct 1 2008, 11:16 AM) *
An image artifact?
And here I was thinking that crazy swiss rocketman had made it this far... sad.gif



Are you sure Doug?...
tongue.gif


This is a consequence of of our fast driving. It is a pebble that was squashed between one of the wheels and the terrain.

Paolo

Posted by: mike Oct 2 2008, 12:00 AM

QUOTE (djellison @ Oct 1 2008, 12:01 PM) *
Were taken at the same time - and the feature is only in one - so it is an imaging artifact, not a real object.


Out of curiosity.. What sort of things would cause this in particular to appear in an image?

Posted by: CosmicRocker Oct 2 2008, 03:30 AM

QUOTE (tim53 @ Oct 1 2008, 10:12 AM) *
The file with "25cm" in the filename is at the full resolution of the HiRISE mosaic. The Navcam overhead is rendered at 1cm/pixel for the planning tool, but unless folks can open something like Jpeg 2000 format, putting a 1cm/pixel zoom of the map on the rover website would be difficult. Easy to produce, though. ...

Thanks, Tim. Although I couldn't see any file name containing "25 cm," my observation was in error. I was using someone else's computer last night and it apparently had a very old or faulty monitor. Now that I am back on my machine, the maps look great. smile.gif I was certainly not trying to suggest that we needed 1 cm/px route maps.

QUOTE (tim53 @ Oct 1 2008, 10:26 AM) *
... the "purgatoids" ...
I love it! I am going to work very hard to add that word to my vocabulary. wink.gif

Posted by: Oersted Oct 2 2008, 08:42 AM

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Oct 1 2008, 11:36 PM) *
This is a consequence of of our fast driving. It is a pebble that was squashed between one of the wheels and the terrain.

Paolo


Wauw, you are really putting the pedal to the metal on Oppy, aren't you! - Was flying debris captured like that before, since you can so comfortably identify it, or is it experience with the Earth-bound rovers at the JPL rock garden that makes you know it?

Posted by: Ant103 Oct 2 2008, 09:05 AM

Sol 1666 panorama updated smile.gif
http://www.db-prods.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/sol1666-navcampano1.jpg

Posted by: remcook Oct 2 2008, 09:12 AM

It's great to see some trekking again and some new vistas smile.gif

Posted by: djellison Oct 2 2008, 11:16 AM

QUOTE (Oersted @ Oct 2 2008, 09:42 AM) *
Was flying debris captured like that before,


Paolo was being sarcastic smile.gif

Posted by: mhoward Oct 2 2008, 01:11 PM

QUOTE (djellison @ Oct 2 2008, 04:16 AM) *
Paolo was being sarcastic smile.gif


It made me laugh; I was almost certain that Paolo was joking. But then I had to stop and think for a moment. Yes, I'm pretty sure he's joking. smile.gif

Seriously, I imagine its just a random cosmic ray hit. Right?

Posted by: djellison Oct 2 2008, 01:13 PM

Got to be - it's not 'real' or it'd be in L & R.

Posted by: mhoward Oct 2 2008, 02:21 PM

QUOTE (Ant103 @ Oct 2 2008, 02:05 AM) *
Sol 1666 panorama updated smile.gif


And here's the http://mmb.unmannedspaceflight.com/MERBSol1666Navcam.mov (now 2.5 MB)

Posted by: fredk Oct 2 2008, 02:56 PM

In the new pancams we can see a couple of old friends we haven't seen in quite a while, what we called "Hoy" and "The Lump" (official names Straight and Madrid), which I've circled here:


Posted by: RoverDriver Oct 2 2008, 03:04 PM

QUOTE (mhoward @ Oct 2 2008, 05:11 AM) *
It made me laugh; I was almost certain that Paolo was joking. But then I had to stop and think for a moment. Yes, I'm pretty sure he's joking. smile.gif
...


Whenever I think about the rovers moving somehow the words "paint" and "dry" come to mind. Not all the times. Sometimes it is "grass" and "grow". smile.gif

Paolo

Posted by: djellison Oct 2 2008, 03:12 PM

Yeah - just be carefull if you hear Scott making jet-engine noises within 20 feet of a workstation.

Doug

Posted by: ngunn Oct 2 2008, 03:23 PM

QUOTE (djellison @ Oct 2 2008, 02:13 PM) *
Got to be - it's not 'real' or it'd be in L & R.


Silly little question but I have to ask it. There must be a small volume up close to each camera that is not imaged by the other camera. How far does this extend in front of the cameras? Would any mid-air object within that range be so close as to be way out of focus?

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 2 2008, 04:25 PM

QUOTE (fredk @ Oct 2 2008, 04:56 PM) *
In the new pancams we can see a couple of old friends we haven't seen in quite a while, what we called "Hoy" and "The Lump" (official names Straight and Madrid

Good catch, fredk! It was a long time ago, wasn't it?

Posted by: marsophile Oct 2 2008, 04:35 PM

QUOTE (ngunn @ Oct 2 2008, 07:23 AM) *
Silly little question but I have to ask it. There must be a small volume up close to each camera that is not imaged by the other camera. How far does this extend in front of the cameras? Would any mid-air object within that range be so close as to be way out of focus?


The separation of the navcam "eyes" is 20 cm. The strange feature is almost at the left edge of the image. An object about 1 meter in front of the camera would be shifted about 11 degrees by parallax in the view of the right eye. This would seem to be enough to put it out of the field of view. But I agree it is most likely a cosmic ray.

Posted by: djellison Oct 2 2008, 04:39 PM

Well - Navcam is a 45 deg FOV, and they're 20cm apart (pancam is 30).

So - it's a triangle about 20cm across, and projecting 10 cm forward.

Posted by: climber Oct 2 2008, 05:12 PM

Before the long treck will start, I'd like to update the file of this topic: http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.php?showtopic=2580&hl=
What I find will be usefull, and keep us less nervous, will be to add the periods of restricted sols clearly shown. But I miss the essential : a starting time and a recurence.
In case Paolo could provide me (us) with this information it'll be very ideal; if not, is there somebody that can tell me for sure when next period will start as well as the recurence?
Gracie Mille

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 3 2008, 07:57 AM

Beautiful view from Cape Victory! cool.gif
Check the latest images after the drive on sol 1668 here: http://nasa.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/navcam/2008-10-03/
It's a whole 360º shot but autostitch was unable to do it completely. Anyway, here's what I've got.



Edited: Added a polar projection.

Posted by: Ant103 Oct 3 2008, 03:15 PM

Hi Tesh',
I've made the complete version using R "eye" to avoid the grey disk of dust at the top center of each frame of left camera, but it doesn't match correctly with my flatfield image.
Made with Hugin if you're curious (not very perfect : non flat horizon, shifting error).
http://www.db-prods.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/sol1668-pano.jpg

Posted by: mhoward Oct 3 2008, 03:17 PM

Here's the usual http://mmb.unmannedspaceflight.com/MERBSol1668Navcam.mov (3 MB)

Posted by: Marz Oct 3 2008, 05:10 PM

Forgive me if I'm repeating a FAQ, but in the event a new science target is reached, what is the status of Oppy's RAT and spectrometer? From what I recall, the RAT still had some life left in it, but the spectrometer was requiring soak times of more than 48 hours?

Posted by: RoverDriver Oct 3 2008, 05:23 PM

QUOTE (Marz @ Oct 3 2008, 09:10 AM) *
Forgive me if I'm repeating a FAQ, but in the event a new science target is reached, what is the status of Oppy's RAT and spectrometer? From what I recall, the RAT still had some life left in it, but the spectrometer was requiring soak times of more than 48 hours?


RAT is still useable, it is a pain to use it, but useable. Which spectrometer? MB, APXS, MTES?

Paolo

Posted by: Marz Oct 3 2008, 05:46 PM

QUOTE (RoverDriver @ Oct 3 2008, 12:23 PM) *
RAT is still useable, it is a pain to use it, but useable. Which spectrometer? MB, APXS, MTES?

Paolo


I meant the MB (Mossbauer) spectrometer. It seems like that is the spectrometer most often used to detect minerals like pyroxene & hematite, correct?

Thanks!

Posted by: RoverDriver Oct 3 2008, 06:09 PM

QUOTE (Marz @ Oct 3 2008, 09:46 AM) *
I meant the MB (Mossbauer) spectrometer. It seems like that is the spectrometer most often used to detect minerals like pyroxene & hematite, correct?

Thanks!


Ah, you are talking o an engineer here. I know how to place it on a rock and know it takes a LOOOONNNNNGGGGGGG time to integrate, but don't ask me what minerals it detects unsure.gif .

Paolo

Posted by: Oersted Oct 3 2008, 07:00 PM

Paolo got me there with the debris thing, good one! - I do know tho, that the rovers move excruciatingly slowly, just though that it would still be possible to squeeze some little object so much that it would go ka-poww! and splinter...

Posted by: Stu Oct 3 2008, 07:59 PM

3D view of farside of VC http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v509/cumbriansky/1b.jpg...

Posted by: RoverDriver Oct 3 2008, 08:04 PM

QUOTE (Oersted @ Oct 3 2008, 11:00 AM) *
Paolo got me there with the debris thing, good one! - I do know tho, that the rovers move excruciatingly slowly, just though that it would still be possible to squeeze some little object so much that it would go ka-poww! and splinter...


That is true. Before deciding to keep the IDD unstowed when driving, we did some tedting in the sandbox which were "interesting". I can't believe I actually got to drop the rover from 15cm on a hard surface but the IDD survived, unscathed to the event, and had it landed on a small pebble at just the right angle t would have resulted in ricocheting.

Paolo

Posted by: climber Oct 5 2008, 07:41 PM

Twitter says that the solar conjunction will be mid-nov to mid-dec and that Phoenix will be in the "wild" for 2 weeks at the deepest of this period.
I wonder if we'll have took off from Vicky before conjunction starts as well as what she'll do during these two weeks.
I must say I was caught by surprise.

Posted by: dilo Oct 5 2008, 08:52 PM

VC from a new viewpoint (Sol 1668 - Right NavCam - very rough stitch!): ph34r.gif

 

Posted by: climber Oct 6 2008, 08:41 AM

May be rought but it gives another perspective. Duck Bay seams already far away.

Posted by: climber Oct 6 2008, 10:51 AM

Restricted sols supposed to be finished now.
We'll probably have more activities during the following 3 weeks.
wheel.gif pancam.gif

Posted by: dilo Oct 7 2008, 07:03 AM

QUOTE (dilo @ Oct 5 2008, 08:52 PM) *
VC from a new viewpoint (Sol 1668 - Right NavCam - very rough stitch!): ph34r.gif

Polar projection of 360° version:


 

Posted by: Astro0 Oct 7 2008, 12:33 PM

Nice work Marco.
I've put a version of my own on my new http://astro0.wordpress.com/.

Astro0

EDIT: Replying to Marco's post below...

"It's a lot of Photoshop work and a heap of anti-vignetting".

Posted by: dilo Oct 7 2008, 12:55 PM

Thanks, Astro0... I must admit your version is by far better than mine! blink.gif
How did you removed the many defects in original pictures?

Posted by: fredk Oct 7 2008, 01:28 PM

QUOTE (dilo @ Oct 7 2008, 08:03 AM) *
Polar projection of 360° version:
Thanks, Dilo, but somehow that's a mirror-reflected image! blink.gif

Posted by: Phil Stooke Oct 7 2008, 01:33 PM

Yes, it's a mirror image! - but a nice view anyway.

Phil

Posted by: dilo Oct 7 2008, 07:33 PM

Yes, you are very kind... is reflected, I think because I had to rewrite the PovRay routine. mad.gif

Posted by: mars loon Oct 7 2008, 11:36 PM

QUOTE (dilo @ Oct 7 2008, 08:03 AM) *
Polar projection of 360° version:


now thats a crusty martian italiano pizza .. just needs sauce and a few toppings. now we got something to munch on for the long trek ahead. wink.gif ken


Posted by: climber Oct 8 2008, 10:28 AM

Not very scientific, but I love your analysis smile.gif

Posted by: Ant103 Oct 8 2008, 02:04 PM

http://www.localarcade.com/arcade_art/data/thumbnails/9/Homer_Simpson_Sideart_Homebrew.jpg

Hum, ahem!

So, Sol 1666 navcam view updated. It miss one frame but impossible to stitch it (no control point to find).
http://www.db-prods.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/sol1666-navcampano2.jpg

Edit : Sputnik in colors (Sol 1663) smile.gif
http://www.db-prods.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/sol1663-sputnikcrateratvictoria.jpg

Posted by: mhoward Oct 8 2008, 04:33 PM

Whoah. Long drive south on Sol 1673, with a Pancam drive-direction mosaic to the southeast. Nice one, RoverDriver(s).

Posted by: djellison Oct 8 2008, 05:01 PM

130ish metres looking at the DDPCI's ( drive direction pancam images - it's my all new acronym )

Sweet smile.gif

Posted by: mhoward Oct 8 2008, 05:24 PM

Here's a view to get a sense of it:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/marscat/2924119905/sizes/l/

Posted by: Nirgal Oct 8 2008, 07:01 PM

QUOTE (Ant103 @ Oct 8 2008, 04:04 PM) *
So, Sol 1666 navcam view updated. It miss one frame but impossible to stitch it (no control point to find).


Edit : Sputnik in colors (Sol 1663) smile.gif


Very nice ones, Ant !

That navcam view with Oppy's shadow looming in front of 'the Abyss' is one of the most scenic compositions yet
(the pan should be even better stitcheable once the PDS IMGs are available smile.gif

Posted by: peter59 Oct 9 2008, 05:40 PM

Cape Pillar


Posted by: BrianL Oct 9 2008, 07:45 PM

Is that a crater rim sticking above the horizon in the middle frame?


Posted by: Shaka Oct 9 2008, 07:53 PM

I'd say that's the ...er... Beacon.
Now tell us which side of the crater it's on. cool.gif

Posted by: peter59 Oct 9 2008, 08:08 PM

and Cape Victory
http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/navcam/2008-10-09/1N276796207EFF91CUP0605R0M1.JPG

Posted by: BrianL Oct 9 2008, 08:09 PM

No, the beacon (whichever side it is on) would be off-frame to the right. That looks like a distant crater, but I can't place it.

Posted by: Pando Oct 9 2008, 08:36 PM

QUOTE (BrianL @ Oct 9 2008, 11:45 AM) *
Is that a crater rim sticking above the horizon in the middle frame?


QUOTE (BrianL @ Oct 9 2008, 12:09 PM) *
No, the beacon (whichever side it is on) would be off-frame to the right. That looks like a distant crater, but I can't place it.


That's Endurance. We've been there smile.gif

Posted by: climber Oct 9 2008, 08:39 PM

I'm with Shaka there, that's the Beacon

Posted by: Pando Oct 9 2008, 08:42 PM

ROTFLOL

Posted by: Stu Oct 9 2008, 08:43 PM

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v509/cumbriansky/CapeV-3d.jpg... not much depth of field I'm afraid... sorry...

Posted by: Shaka Oct 9 2008, 08:45 PM

Yes, I'll go with Endurance, at least until Tesh shows us on the orbital map. I shouldn't have trusted my memory without checking a map.
Bad! (raps own knuckles) blink.gif

Posted by: climber Oct 9 2008, 08:51 PM

I'm not longer from you side, Shaka.
There's no way on Ear... er, Mars we can see Endurance from where we are. When coming to Victoria, I've understood that the near side was higher than the far side so I guess we are a little bit going down at the moment and Endurance disapeared from view a looong time ago. Let see what the specialists have to say.

Posted by: marswiggle Oct 9 2008, 08:56 PM

Yes it's true it cannot be the Beacon, on Cape St Mary, which is outside of the frame. But also not Endurance, instead it's one of those hefty drifts at the 'lip' of Duck Bay. In the stitched image you can see several similar but smaller dunes framing the various bays of Victoria. (It's somewhat amazing to me that on Mars the biggest dunes always tend to gather themselves on the highest spots of the local topography.)

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 9 2008, 09:02 PM

QUOTE (marswiggle @ Oct 9 2008, 10:56 PM) *
... instead it's one of those hefty drifts at the 'lip' of Duck Bay.

Exactly.

QUOTE (peter59 @ Oct 9 2008, 10:08 PM) *
and Cape Victory
http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/navcam/2008-10-09/1N276796207EFF91CUP0605R0M1.JPG

When I saw that picture I said: What the hell!!! Are we going IN again?!?
Must check the latest mobility info but it seems we are on the next cape following Victory. Does it have a name?

Edited: Check the http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.php?s=&showtopic=681&view=findpost&p=128323. wink.gif

Posted by: djellison Oct 9 2008, 10:02 PM

QUOTE (BrianL @ Oct 9 2008, 08:45 PM) *
Is that a crater rim sticking above the horizon in the middle frame?


It's the dune that was at the entry to Duck Bay.

Posted by: alan Oct 10 2008, 02:35 AM

show off

http://207.7.139.5/mars/opportunity/forward_hazcam/2008-10-09/1F276795915EFF91CUP1212R0M1.JPG
http://207.7.139.5/mars/opportunity/navcam/2008-10-09/1N276796037EFF91CUP0605R0M1.JPG

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 10 2008, 05:32 AM

What a view! cool.gif

(Created with MMB & Hugin)

Posted by: Astro0 Oct 10 2008, 05:38 AM

Some nice details in the shadows of that Cape.


Posted by: CosmicRocker Oct 10 2008, 06:11 AM

It is fascinating to see how differently the new capes appear to us. They are driving very quickly these days. I guess we need to move our eyes southward as we catch a few last glimpses of lovely Victoria.

Posted by: Ant103 Oct 10 2008, 08:12 AM

The view in full res smile.gif
It's a very impressive place which is remembers me Valley Without Peril
http://www.db-prods.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/sol1674-navcampan.jpg

Posted by: Astro0 Oct 10 2008, 10:22 AM

Nice work Ant and Tesh. Here's my shot at this http://astro0.wordpress.com/.
Astro0

Posted by: mhoward Oct 10 2008, 01:33 PM

http://mmb.unmannedspaceflight.com/MERBSol1674Navcam.mov (done using MMB and PTGui). The initial view direction is north.

Posted by: climber Oct 10 2008, 01:33 PM

Do yu think we could see Oppy's path at Ducks bay ?
Actually, Duck's Bay is seen over the tip of the previous Cape in the panorama, right?

Posted by: Ant103 Oct 10 2008, 03:23 PM

A little hard to have a good result, and I think it's pretty good.
The same pano but in stereo wink.gif
http://www.db-prods.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/sol1674-navcampan-anaglyph.jpg
(Hugin&Gimp wink.gif wink.gif )

Posted by: fredk Oct 10 2008, 03:41 PM

What a spectacular view! Thanks for the pans, guys. What a beautiful spot to say farewell to old Victoria...

Here's an attempt at cleaning up the nice navcam cloud sequence from sol 1669. It's basically each frame divided by the average of all six frames, then tweaked a bit:


Posted by: ElkGroveDan Oct 10 2008, 06:03 PM

What the heck is that data drop out in the upper corner? The mother ship?

Posted by: fredk Oct 10 2008, 06:23 PM

Mother ship, hah!

Actually, if you look at the original jpegs, they all have zero pixel value in that corner. Those jpegs are stretched, so the brightest pixel becomes 255 and the darkest pixel becomes 0. So that corner isn't really black, it's just the darkest part of the navcam frame (and probably not much darker than other parts, really). So when I flatfielded by taking the ratio, I just set 0/0 to black. There will definitely be much more detail in the raw images.

Posted by: mhoward Oct 10 2008, 10:57 PM

Going back a bit, here's the completed http://mmb.unmannedspaceflight.com/MERBSol1666Navcam.mov (now 2.7 MB).

Posted by: fredk Oct 11 2008, 04:00 PM

I'm crazy about http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all/1/n/1674/1N276796259EFF91CUP0605R0M1.JPG Here's an anaglyph version:



Let's soak up the dramatic scenery while we can...

Posted by: mhoward Oct 11 2008, 04:09 PM

Look at all that bedrock:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/marscat/2931132717/sizes/l/

Edit: increased the brightness to bring out some detail.

Posted by: Tman Oct 11 2008, 04:45 PM

QUOTE (climber @ Oct 10 2008, 03:33 PM) *
Do yu think we could see Oppy's path at Ducks bay ?
Actually, Duck's Bay is seen over the tip of the previous Cape in the panorama, right?

I think it is visible in that Pancam image http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportunity/pancam/2008-10-10/1P276796856EFF91CUP2361L2M2.JPG

Posted by: jamescanvin Oct 12 2008, 05:23 PM

I've been getting a little behind worrying about the ripples further south. Just catching up with the last couple of colour mosaics.

Sputnik

http://www.nivnac.co.uk/mer/index.php/opportunity-sols-1663-aamp-1671-sputnik-

And Cape Pillar

http://www.nivnac.co.uk/mer/index.php/opportunity-sols-1663-aamp-1671-sputnik-

(Both images link to the same page)

James

Posted by: vikingmars Oct 12 2008, 09:10 PM

smile.gif I could not resist building for you this nice panorama... An impressive view ! Enjoy ! smile.gif


Posted by: SFJCody Oct 14 2008, 04:50 PM

Does anyone know when the next drive is?

Posted by: peter59 Oct 14 2008, 05:03 PM

QUOTE (SFJCody @ Oct 14 2008, 05:50 PM) *
Does anyone know when the next drive is?

Today.

1. What new EDRs from ANY sol were received on sol 1679?

Sol Seq.Ver ETH ESF EDN EFF ERP Tot Description
----- -------- --- --- --- --- --- ---- -----------
01679 p0633.03 0 0 0 2 0 2 navcam_3x1_az_54_3_bpp
01679 p1211.03 2 0 0 2 0 4 ultimate_front_haz_1_bpp_pri_15
01679 p1311.07 2 0 0 2 0 4 rear_haz_ultimate_1_bpp_crit15


Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 14 2008, 07:25 PM

http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.php?s=&showtopic=681&view=findpost&p=128673

Posted by: mhoward Oct 14 2008, 07:40 PM

QUOTE (Tesheiner @ Oct 14 2008, 01:25 PM) *
http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.php?s=&showtopic=681&view=findpost&p=128673


Strange. Not sure why we're suddenly hanging around here, unless maybe it's to take long-baseline stereo of Cape Victory?

And I guess somethings broken in the update process, as Exploratorium doesn't seem to be updating. sad.gif

Edit: new images down. I guess the pipeline is working after all.

Posted by: fredk Oct 14 2008, 09:02 PM

I'd say it is for long baseline imaging.

Unless, of course, they've spotted some festoons! ph34r.gif laugh.gif

Posted by: Stu Oct 14 2008, 10:46 PM

Steep... unsure.gif


Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 15 2008, 05:28 AM

QUOTE (mhoward @ Oct 14 2008, 09:40 PM) *
And I guess somethings broken in the update process, as Exploratorium doesn't seem to be updating. sad.gif
Edit: new images down. I guess the pipeline is working after all.

Not completely; the hazcams are still missing and they were downlinked before the available navcams. Images from the previous site are missing too.

Edited: Today's imaging plan includes these mosaics but no driving. I guess the pancam one is for LBS imaging and once finished we'll leave Victoria for good.

01680::p1900::01::2::0::0::2::0::4::nav_2x1_deckCheck_pri61
01680::p1953::02::2::0::0::2::0::4::nav_1x1_az_180_1_bpp_LUT3_pri57
01680::p2364::19::3::0::0::3::1::7::pancam_Victory_3x1_L2


Posted by: vikingmars Oct 15 2008, 08:27 AM

...and once finished we'll leave Victoria for good.

What about having the last look at Sofi ("Explorer") crater ?
I'd love to see a last view of Victoria across Sofi before leaving... and see up close the interface between the rims of Victoria and Sofi with some exposed layers on both sides smile.gif



Posted by: djellison Oct 15 2008, 09:41 AM

In his DPS presentation yesterday, Steve suggested there would be one stop after this one - (C on the attached image) and then we're gone.




 

Posted by: RobertEB Oct 15 2008, 01:28 PM

QUOTE (vikingmars @ Oct 15 2008, 03:27 AM) *
...and once finished we'll leave Victoria for good.

What about having the last look at Sofi ("Explorer") crater ?
I'd love to see a last view of Victoria across Sofi before leaving... and see up close the interface between the rims of Victoria and Sofi with some exposed layers on both sides smile.gif



I would like to see that as well. It would be interesting to see the impact boundary between the two craters.

Posted by: AndyG Oct 15 2008, 02:04 PM

Would the boundary be worth it? Obviously Victoria predates Sofi, and the most recent activity appears to be the erosion and cape-and-baying of Victoria, perhaps by 100m diameter. As Sofi has not yet been cut by the advancing erosion, what benefits are likely in studying the smaller crater?

Andy

Posted by: Juramike Oct 15 2008, 02:17 PM

I'd like a stop by Sofi as well.

I think it would be really interesting to get a compare/contrast of Sofi vs. Victoria. Especially to see how the impact rim of Sofi is eroding out into Victoria (how fractured is it? Did the Sofi impact compression make the Victoria side erode faster or slower?).

The potential for dramatic pictures is also worthwhile. Neat angles of Sofi in the foreground with Victoria. (I thought the Sputnik crater images were pretty cool.) And you might get a nice shot of Duck Bay (could we see Oppy's tracks?) from across Victoria.

(Is there a wire I can pull to signal a stop?)

-Mike


Posted by: djellison Oct 15 2008, 03:06 PM

If we stop every time someone says 'that's interesting' between here and Endeavour - it'll take 2,000 years, not 2.

Posted by: vikingmars Oct 15 2008, 03:18 PM

QUOTE (djellison @ Oct 15 2008, 05:06 PM) *
If we stop every time someone says 'that's interesting' between here and Endeavour - it'll take 2,000 years, not 2.


It reminds me :
"133:09:15 Shepard: I don't think we'll have time to go up there."
"133:09:16 Mitchell: Oh, let's give it a whirl. Gee whiz. We can't stop without looking into Cone Crater. (Garbled) everything if we don't get there."
Well... I'm on Mitchell's side ! laugh.gif

Posted by: djellison Oct 15 2008, 03:38 PM

Cone Crater probably isn't a good example, given that they couldn't really find it and never made it smile.gif

Put it this way - if I had to make a choice between stop 'C' - and Explorer crater - I would say 'C'. You have to draw a line somewhere, really.

Doug

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 15 2008, 04:00 PM

Oh, we are 100% in back-seat driving mode, aren't we? laugh.gif

Meanwhile, here's Cape Victory as seen by the pancam (L2 filter) "this evening" (sol 1680).


Posted by: ElkGroveDan Oct 15 2008, 04:12 PM

QUOTE (Tesheiner @ Oct 15 2008, 09:00 AM) *
Meanwhile, here's Cape Victory as seen by the pancam (L2 filter) "this evening" (sol 1680).

Quit teasing us. There's nothing we can do about it now.

Posted by: mhoward Oct 15 2008, 05:15 PM

QUOTE (ElkGroveDan @ Oct 15 2008, 10:12 AM) *
Quit teasing us. There's nothing we can do about it now.


That's life, I guess. I think the incline is too steep, anyway. At least that's what I'm telling myself rolleyes.gif

This one suffers from all sorts of compressed JPG and brightness stretching issues, but here's the http://mmb.unmannedspaceflight.com/MERBSol1679Navcam.mov so far (2.9MB)

Posted by: fredk Oct 15 2008, 06:16 PM

I've long wondered about access to deep layers via some of the eroded capes, rather than the bays. Look at Capes Victory, Frio, and the "backside" of the Beacon (St. Mary). With the new imagery, I estimate the slope leading down towards the tip of Cape Victory at around 15 to 20 degrees, which on the surface sounds drivable. But some of that slope looks like it might be quite rough.

We have to assume that Duck Bay was deemed either safer or more interesting than these alternatives.

Posted by: marswiggle Oct 15 2008, 07:25 PM

Whether or not we'll ever see a closeup view of Explorer from ground, we always have the HiRISE imagery. I don't remember seeing anaglyphs of the southern bays and Exp, so I made one myself. (In full res, using PSP_001414_ and 009141_1780)

I have an impression that the bay nearest to Exp is already in the process of eating into the little crater, and thus its present west rim is not anymore the 'original' one, as revealed by its inward deviation and slight dip from the otherwise nicely symmetrical rim.

Also see the unusually sharp edge of the tip of the cape next to (left of) Explorer.

 

Posted by: Stu Oct 15 2008, 07:33 PM

http://cumbriansky.wordpress.com/2008/10/15/oppy-continues-on-her-way down into VC from the latest stopping place... blink.gif


Posted by: Pando Oct 16 2008, 03:51 AM

With apologies to everyone...



 

Posted by: Stu Oct 16 2008, 08:06 AM

Sofi Crater over http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v509/cumbriansky/Sofi-3D.jpg...

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 17 2008, 09:15 AM

We're heading into the weekend and here're bits of the imaging plan and how I "read" it:

01682::p0617::08::14::0::0::14::0::28::navcam_7x1_az_18_0.5_bpp
01682::p0713::03::6::0::0::6::0::12::navcam_3x1_az_198_3_bpp
01682::p1211::03::2::0::0::2::0::4::ultimate_front_haz_1_bpp_pri_15
01682::p1311::07::2::0::0::2::0::4::rear_haz_ultimate_1_bpp_crit15
01682::p2365::19::12::0::0::12::2::26::pancam_Cape_Victory_3x1_L257R2
01682::p2366::19::12::0::0::12::2::26::pancam_iceland_L257R1
01682::p2367::19::8::0::0::8::2::18::pancam_drive_dir_4x1_L7R1
01682::p2580::21::19::0::0::19::4::42::pancam_superres_Cape_Victory1_L26R12
01682::p2581::21::19::0::0::19::4::42::pancam_superres_Cape_Victory2_L26R12
01683::p2368::19::4::0::0::4::1::9::pancam_LBS_Cape_Victory_pt2_L2


Sol 1682 (today): Color mosaic of Cape Victory, followed by driving a bit towards the tip of the current cape (BTW, does it have a name?) and taking the usual post-drive nav/pancam mosaics.
Sol 1683 (saturday): Superres and second LBS mosaic of Cape Victory.
Sol 1684 (sunday): Leave the area. wheel.gif wheel.gif wheel.gif

Posted by: ustrax Oct 17 2008, 09:32 AM

Tesheiner, what might be the "iceland" referred in your post?



Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 17 2008, 11:41 AM

Dunno until the images are downlinked. Just wait a few hours.

Posted by: MahFL Oct 17 2008, 02:38 PM

A lot of pictures came down today.

Posted by: Stu Oct 17 2008, 03:50 PM

Yep, just trawling through them now... lots of great 3D possibilities...

http://cumbriansky.files.wordpress.com/2008/10/out3.jpg

Posted by: fredk Oct 17 2008, 05:50 PM

Most of the huge new batch are duplicates of old images. Perhaps they've reposted several sol's worth to be sure they've cleared the backlog?

For example, we had Stu's egress shot already: http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all/1/n/1632/1N273075972EFF90MJP1937R0M1.JPG

Today's exploratorium version is not a retransmitted update - the version number is still M1 and the files are identical bit by bit.

But I do love that view, Stu, and especially the clouds in the sky!

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 17 2008, 06:08 PM

QUOTE (Tesheiner @ Oct 17 2008, 11:15 AM) *
Sol 1682 (today): Color mosaic of Cape Victory, followed by driving a bit towards the tip of the current cape (BTW, does it have a name?) and taking the usual post-drive nav/pancam mosaics.

... and today's driving distance was, well, zero. rolleyes.gif

Posted by: BrianL Oct 17 2008, 06:41 PM

QUOTE (Tesheiner @ Oct 17 2008, 04:15 AM) *
Sol 1684 (sunday): Leave the area.


The imaging plan only goes up to 1683. How do you know they are leaving on 1684?

Posted by: centsworth_II Oct 17 2008, 07:45 PM

QUOTE (BrianL @ Oct 17 2008, 02:41 PM) *
How do you know they are leaving on 1684?

Right. What about stop "C" mentioned in http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.php?s=&showtopic=5497&view=findpost&p=128708

(Or maybe by 'leave the area', Tesheiner just means 'leave for stop C', not 'leave Victoria Crater'.)

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 17 2008, 08:30 PM

QUOTE (BrianL @ Oct 17 2008, 08:41 PM) *
The imaging plan only goes up to 1683. How do you know they are leaving on 1684?

I don't; it was a guess. smile.gif
But it was based on similar situations on the past. Today was planned for driving (why it was not executed is another aspect) and the "post-drive" images would be available right in time for the people at JPL to plan another drive the day after, that means tomorrow (note that we're not in restricted sols). Given that tomorrow plan was already established and includes important pancam imaging (LBS) my assumption was that the next move would be on sunday and might be being planned right now.

> Or maybe by 'leave the area', Tesheiner just means 'leave for stop C', not 'leave Victoria Crater'

... or just "leave the place we are right now", it was not intended to mean "leave for stop C" or "leave VC" although I would prefer the latter. smile.gif

Posted by: Tesheiner Oct 18 2008, 06:50 AM

After yesterday's (1682) cancelled/aborted drive, the imaging plan for sol 1683 has been changed. Now it includes another driving attempt and LBS imaging.

Posted by: Airbag Oct 18 2008, 08:39 PM

QUOTE (Tesheiner @ Oct 18 2008, 02:50 AM) *
After yesterday's (1682) cancelled/aborted drive, the imaging plan for sol 1683 has been changed. Now it includes another driving attempt and LBS imaging.


Aborted because the sun seek failed because of a buffer timing issue. Look for a short (5m or so) bump on sol 1683 for a new LBS imaging attempt immediately followed by a long, L-O-N-G drive. And as for direction, think SSW for a while to come.

Airbag

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