Distant Vistas 2 - The view from Cape Tribulation Options

[Explorer1]

Congrats to the team! 11 years after landing; well deserved.

Presumably there will be a short stay to make a big panorama?

[climber]

Hi climber!(From climber)

[fredk]

Presumably there will be a short stay to make a big panorama?

That's right, according to the new PS update:

The plans for Opportunity in 2015 remain the same: drive to the summit of Cape Tribulation, take what will probably be another breathtaking panorama from the vista point, and then rove on to Spirit of St. Louis Crater, and just beyond, Marathon Valley.

Huge congratulations to the team. What a way to celebrate 11 years!

With the opening up of the view to the south, we now have our first good look at Iazu in a long time:

[polaris]

Hi climber!(From climber)

Hi Climber (from Paris) !

[vikingmars]

Hi climber!(From climber)

Hi Climber (from Meudon) !

[Astro0]

If this isn't today's newspaper headline somewhere, then I'll be disappointed



Nod to James for his summit image.

[fredk]

Ha! But maybe considering the translation from 11 human years to "rover years", and Oppy's condition, the story would read:

115 year old lady, deaf and suffering from arthritis and dementia, reaches summit walking backwards.

[Explorer1]

Deaf how? The antennas are working just fine! Maybe the old girls' senses of smell and taste have declined (her spectrometers), but those eyes are as sharp as ever...
Sense of touch too is fine too; the RAT drill is still usable, right?

[fredk]

I guess the analogy strains when pushed a bit too far. But the important point is that it's absolutely incredible that the fiesty old "lady" has made it this far!

[tanjent]

Go, Granny, go!

[serpens]

That's right, according to the new PS update:

I have to tip my hat to A.J.S Rayl. Her update/summary is, as always, outstanding.

The snippets on Pinnacle Island were particularly interesting, correlated to the identification of other oxygenated material in fractures, with sulphur also evident. I believe that we could assume a dearth of atmospheric oxygen combined with the high probability that alteration took place underground and has subsequently been exposed by erosion. A strong oxidant (hydrogen peroxide) can result from the reaction of anoxic water with iron sulphide (pyrite). For ground water induced alteration this seems a more likely path than photolysis.

[James Sorenson]

The 360 color Pancam Cape Tribulation pan has begun.

http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportuni...cam/2015-01-08/

[fredk]

And it's going to be epic...
http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportuni...2M1.JPG?sol3895

[James Sorenson]

To help me keep track, I'm going to be personally using Phil's projection of my Navcam summit pan to highlight what is roughly down sofar.

[Phil Stooke]

For years now we have been wondering if Victoria crater would be visible from Endeavour. Well, it's too bad about the dusty sky, but if it's ever going to be visible, it will be in this pan. Look for a narrow strip along the horizon ridge. In images taken in the afternoon, the visible far rim (under Cape St. Mary) would be shadowed, so the crater should probably look dark if we see it at all.

Phil