Astronomy Picture of the Day - powered by LUNEXIT.IT

NASA's - Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity will spend some more time (such as during the coldest part of the Martian Winter) at Greeley Haven, a Rocky Outcrop recently named (informally) to honor the Arizona State University (ASU) Regents' Professor Ronald Greeley, a Planetary Geologist who died the last October 27, 2011. Long passionate about exploring the Solar System in general and Mars in particular, Greeley was involved with many missions to the Red Planet, including NASA's Mariners 6, 7, and 9, Viking, Mars Pathfinder, Mars Global Surveyor, and the two Mars Exploration Rovers. He was also a co-investigator for the camera system on the European Space Agency's (ESA) Mars Express Orbiter mission. Among his major research interests there were phoenomena like Wind Erosion, Dunes and Dust Devil Activity, all of which, as you know, can be found in great abundance all over Mars.

Opportunity, which landed on Mars a little more than 8 (eight) years ago, has driven a total of approx. 21 miles (about 34 Km). In August 2011, Opportunity arrived at the Rim of Endeavour Crater, an ancient Impact Crater about 14 miles (approx. 22 km) wide. Eroded sections of the Crater's Rim poke above the flat-lying Sediments (----> the so-called Martian Paving) that Opportunity has driven on since it landed. Located just South of Mars' Equator, the Rover has already worked through 4 (four) Martian Southern Hemisphere Winters. Being closer to the Equator than its (now decommissioned) twin Rover, Spirit, Opportunity has not needed to stay on a Sun-facing Slope during the previous Winters. Now, however, since its Solar Panels carry a thicker coating of Dust than before, it is necessary for Opportunity to spend the Winter at least on a Sun-facing Site where the Rover can tilt its Power Panels Northward, about 15°, so to obtain a maximum Solar Exposure.

As you can easily imagine, Greeley Haven provides just the right tilt and, in addition, while Opportunity remains on the Slope, it will not only be able to take pictures of its surroundings, but it will also have some mobility and, therefore, many chances to investigate Greeley Haven's multiple targets of scientific interest, by using each and every available tool (all of them being positioned on its Robotic Arm).

This frame has been colorized in Natural Colors by (such as the colors that a perfect human eye would actually perceive if someone were near the NASA - Mars Exploration Rover (MER) Opportunity and then looked down, towards the Surface), by using an original technique created - and, in time, dramatically improved - by the Lunar Explorer Italia Team.