McCool Hill Options

[jvandriel]

A view of the wheeltracks before and after the left turn.

Taken on Sol 792 with the R0 navcam.

jvandriel

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[MaxSt]

I was kind of hoping for a closer view, though.

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all...C6P0605R0M1.JPG

[jvandriel]

A view into the drive direction.

Taken on Sol 792 with the L0 navcam.

jvandriel

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[CosmicRocker]

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all...C6P0605R0M1.JPG

That's not quite the closer view I had in mind. I was kind of thinking along the lines of centsworth_II's nostalgic comment regarding the alternate paths that might have been taken. Where would we be if Spirit had taken the less arduous path around the hill to find the buried treasure. There is not a lot of value to be had from second guessing such decisions when exploring an alien world. We need to see what is around the next corner, if we can make it there.

[Vladimorka]

A view into the drive direction.

Taken on Sol 792 with the L0 navcam.

jvandriel

Is this frost? If it is, can it do some dust cleaning? When the frost sublimates from the solar panel may be it can carry some dust particles with it?

[djellison]

At 13:45:38 Mars local solar ? Not a chance. Remember the frost that Opportunity had - it vanished within hours of sunrise. It's a bad image stretch - that's just dust that's being bright.

Doug

[AndyG]

When the frost sublimates from the solar panel may be it can carry some dust particles with it?

I'd be surprised, quite frankly. As the ice turns directly to water vapour I can't see it affecting the dust at all. These rovers need honest-to-goodness dreich Scottish weather. ;-)

Andy G

[edstrick]

Jvandriel: ..."A view of the wheeltracks before and after the left turn"...

I'm afraid Spirit's been drinking again... and at such a tender age!

[Bob Shaw]

I'd be surprised, quite frankly. As the ice turns directly to water vapour I can't see it affecting the dust at all. These rovers need honest-to-goodness dreich Scottish weather. ;-)

Andy G

Andy:

Nobody *needs* dreich Scottish weather.

Now kindly explain the use of the 'd' word to the colonials!

Bob Shaw

[Bill Harris]

OMG, google "dreich" and you come up with a whole new dialect of english. Too bad that the Brits and Welsh murdered it, but the Scots seem to have gotten creative, too.

http://www.rampantscotland.com/parliamo/bl...amo_weather.htm

--Bill

[sattrackpro]

At 13:45:38 Mars local solar ? Not a chance. Remember the frost that Opportunity had - it vanished within hours of sunrise. It's a bad image stretch - that's just dust that's being bright.

Doug

My take as well, Doug. Dust! It's more likely that the 'frost' we saw before was composed of pure carbon dioxide - dry ice... with zero H2O involvement – no matter how much one might wish it were otherwise.

With the low gravity of Mars, the atmosphere is decreasing at a high rate - increased geometrically by solar bombardment, which further accelerates the break up of heavier atmospheric molecules and resultant lighter-ion planetary escape - water vapor being the most vulnerable to such radiation break up.

An aside, the idea that pools of surface water will be found on Mars is laughable. Liquid water cannot exist on Mars due to the fact that the atmospheric pressure (over ten times lower than that of earth – and getting lower) simply precludes the possibility.

[Guest_paulanderson_*]

My take as well, Doug. Dust! It's more likely that the 'frost' we saw before was composed of pure carbon dioxide - dry ice... with zero H2O involvement – no matter how much one might wish it were otherwise.

With the low gravity of Mars, the atmosphere is decreasing at a high rate - increased geometrically by solar bombardment, which further accelerates the break up of heavier atmospheric molecules and resultant lighter-ion planetary escape - water vapor being the most vulnerable to such radiation break up.

An aside, the idea that pools of surface water will be found on Mars is laughable. Liquid water cannot exist on Mars due to the fact that the atmospheric pressure (over ten times lower than that of earth – and getting lower) simply precludes the possibility.

The MER team had already indicated, back in 2004, that the frost seen on Opportunity was ordinary water frost. Re Vladimorka's and AndyG's posts, they also indicated that the frost could perhaps affect the dust on the solar panels; both topics mentioned here:

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/newsroom/pr.../20041213a.html

"A portion of Mars' water vapor is moving from the north pole toward the south pole during the current northern-summer and southern-winter period. The transient increase in atmospheric water at Meridiani, just south of the equator, plus low temperatures near the surface, contribute to appearance of the clouds and frost, Wolff said. Frost shows up some mornings on the rover itself. The possibility that it has a clumping effect on the accumulated dust on solar panels is under consideration as a factor in unexpected boosts of electric output from the panels."

While open pools of water might be much more unlikely, I agree, there is still a good chance of minute quantities of liquid water within the soil itself. What about the lab studies showing this as possible, notably briny water that could persist longer than originally believed, which were extensively discussed not long ago? Have we already forgotten about that?

[jvandriel]

The panoramic view on Sol 794.

Spirit is backing of to find another path to McCool Hill.

Taken with the L0 navcam.

jvandriel

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[jvandriel]

Here is the almost complete 360 degree panoramic view from Sol 794 and Sol 795.

Taken with the L0 navcam.

jvandriel

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[jvandriel]

Here is the complete 360 degree panoramic view from Sol 792 Sol 794 and Sol 795.

To put the wheeltracks in their context.

3 Sols and 2 different locations stitched by Autostitch. ( Almost perfect )

Images taken by the L0 navcam.

jvandriel

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