* Astronomy

Blobrana · L

RE: Mars Exploration Rover Spirit

Blobrana · L

The long-crippled right-front wheel of NASA's beleaguered Mars rover Spirit surprised mission managers by spinning for the first time in three years last week.
NASA engineers decided to try switching on the crippled wheel to see if they could gain more traction to try to extricate the rover from the sand trap it has been stuck in since May 6.
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Blobrana · L

Right-Front Wheel Rotations

Spirit's right-front wheel, which had stopped operating in March 2006, revolved with apparently normal motion during the first three of four driving segments on Sol 2117 (Wednesday, Dec. 16) but stopped early in the fourth segment of the drive.
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Blobrana · L

Unexpected Wheel-Test Results

Diagnostic tests were run on Spirit's right-rear wheel and right-front wheel on Sol 2013 (Dec. 12, 2009). The right-rear wheel, which stalled during a drive two weeks earlier, continued to show no motion in the latest tests and exhibited very high resistance in the motor winding. The right-front wheel, which stopped operating on Sol 779 (March 13, 2006), surprised engineers by indicating normal resistance and turning slightly during a resistance test for that wheel.
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Blobrana · L

This image was taken by the Spirit rover on Sol 2092.

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Credit: NASA/JPL

Blobrana · L

Second stalled wheel may doom Mars rover

A second wheel may now be broken on NASA's Spirit rover, dampening hopes for freeing the robot from a sand trap it has been trapped in for seven months. The injury will also increase the rover's risk of freezing to death in the coming winter.
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Blobrana · L

A series of diagnostic tests on Spirit's right-rear wheel on sols 2104 and 2105 (Dec. 3 and 4) investigated stalls that occurred on Sol 2099 (Nov. 28) and earlier. The rover team cannot draw any conclusions at this point, but the results are not encouraging, and further tests are planned.

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Sandtrapped Rover Makes a Big Discovery

"The rover's spinning wheels have broken through a crust, and we've found something supremely interesting in the disturbed soil" - Ray Arvidson of the Washington University in St. Louis.

Spirit, like its twin rover Opportunity, has roamed the Red Planet for nearly 6 years. During that time, the rover has had some close calls and come out fighting from each. In fact, it's been driving backwards since one of its wheels jammed in 2006.
From the beginning, the rovers' motto has been "follow the water." Both rovers have been searching Mars for minerals formed in the presence of H2O. Mars appears dry today, but minerals can provide clues that water was once there.

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Blobrana · L

Another Stall of Right-Rear Wheel Ends Drive
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory News and Features: Spirit's right-rear wheel stalled again on Sol 2099 (Nov. 28, 2009) during the first step of a two-step extrication manoeuvre.

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Blobrana · L

Spirit performed a set of diagnostic actions related to a stall of the right-rear wheel on the previous drive, three days earlier. The diagnostics showed a fully functioning wheel free of obstruction. The rover was commanded forward with 1.5 metres of wheel spin. The rover moved 2.1 millimetres forward, 1.1 millimetres to the left, and 0.3 millimetres down.
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