Opportunity is continuing the drive south to 'Perseverance Valley' on the rim of Endeavour Crater.
The rover drove on Sols 4693 and 4695 (April 6 and April 8, 2017), covering 46 feet (14.11 meters) and 138 feet (41.94 meters), respectively and is now within 0.2 miles (350 meters) of the valley.
Targeted Panoramic Camera (Pancam) images were taken before each drive with Navigation Camera (Navcam) and Pancam panoramas collected after the drives.
Color clast surveys of the ground were performed on Sols 4692, 4694 and 4696 (April 5, April 7 and April 9, 2017). On Sol 4697 (April 10, 2017), the robotic arm was used to collect a Microscopic Imager (MI) of an exposed outcrop target.
The Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) was placed on the same target for a multi-hour integration.
As of Sol 4698 (April 11, 2017), the solar array energy production was 414 watt-hours with an atmospheric opacity (Tau) of 0.996 and a solar array dust factor of 0.596.
Total odometry is 27.59 miles (44.41 kilometers).
New Look at 2004's Martian Hole-in-One Site
A new observation from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) captures the landing platform that the rover Opportunity left behind in Eagle Crater more than 13 years and 27 miles (or 44 kilometers) ago. A series of bounces and tumbles after initial touchdown plunked the airbag-cushioned lander into the crater, a mere 72 feet (22 meters) across, on Jan. 25, 2004, Universal Time (Jan. 24, PST). … read more
