Tricky Mars Rocks Making Things Difficult For NASA's Perseverance Rover
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Perseverance is busy examining rocks in search of these key biomarkers. The most promising rocks will be cached for a future sample-return mission to carry them to Earth in 2033, allowing scientists to apply the most powerful lab technology to study the molecular structure in greater detail and determine whether the organic molecules have biological origins. The life-hunting rover is equipped with a suite of onboard instruments to understand mineralogy and elemental distributions, as well as to detect whether organic molecules are present. At the most promising rocks, Perseverance then attempts to drill a core sample to put in one of its collection tubes. However, choosing a rock that is just right to sample can be challenging for the robotic explorer. Sometimes, the coring process alone can cause the fragile rock samples to fracture, crack or even crumble. When assessing which areas to sample, Perseverance also has to account for the shape and angle of rocks, which can make drilling difficult or even impossible for the rover. Perseverance ran into this issue when attempting to sample what scientists nicknamed "Betty's Rock" — a layered rock located near the bottom of the delta and composed of alternating coarse-grained and fine-grained materials. Unfortunately, the rover was unable to safely maneuver the jagged layers and awkward shape of this rock. Instead, Perseverance found an alternative sampling subject called Skinner Ridge Rock, which is a low-lying rock that looks very similar to Betty's Rock, but appears more manageable for coring. Skinner Ridge Rock is now the rover's next target after a dry spell for sampling.
Credit: NASA/JPL/Space.com
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Mars Helicopter Ingenuity Recovering From Communications Blackout Spawned by Dust
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JPL reestablished contact with the small Ingenuity chopper on Thursday (May 5) after it missed a scheduled call-in about two days before. Engineers suggest that the Mars helicopter may have entered a low power state due to a combination of high levels of dust in the atmosphere and low local temperatures. The helicopter is battling dust, seasonal changes and conditions beyond its design plan, all of which mean it will face more obstacles in continuing its flights in the coming months. The FGPA unit is crucial to making sure Ingenuity remains operational, including controlling the power to avionics elements and operating heaters to keep Ingenuity alive during cold Martian nights. Controllers suspect that after the FGPA lost power, the helicopter's clock reset and the heaters turned off. To try to catch Ingenuity again, engineers commanded Perseverance to listen for the signal for nearly an entire Martian sol (day) on May 5, and finally heard from the helicopter around 11:45 a.m. local Mars time. Ingenuity was limited in what it could send to preserve its power, but controllers were able to determine that the helicopter's basic health appeared to be good. Dust, however, will remain a persistent threat for the solar-powered mission and make it more difficult to recharge the batteries. JPL officials said that Ingenuity has turned on its heaters whenever battery temperatures were lower than 5 degrees Fahrenheit for the past three sols. Engineers now have a new plan. Anew set of commands changed the point at which the battery turns on, to minus 40 degrees F. The helicopter will also be tasked to shut down immediately, instead of using up "precious" battery charge, JPL stated.
Credit: NASA/JPL/Space.com
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