1/20/2024 0 Comments Nasa mars rover updates![]() Each time, the team and our rover have risen to the occasion. Like all Mars missions, we’ve had some unexpected challenges. The team is still reviewing the data and discussing next steps. The sample tube has been cleared for reuse by the project. Is Tube 261 clear of rock sample? We have new Mastcam-Z images looking down the drill bit into the sample container that indicate little if any debris from the cored-rock sample remains. Mastcam-Z imagery taken after the event shows that multiple pieces of sample were dumped onto the surface. With the tube’s open end still pointed towards the surface, we essentially shook the heck out of it for 208 seconds – by means of the percussive function on the drill. 17, the team commanded another operation of the rotary percussive drill in an attempt to dislodge more material from the tube. Download image ›Given that some of the sample had already been lost, the team decided it was time to return the rest of the sample to Mars and hopefully completely empty the tube to ready it for potentially another sampling attempt. ![]() 20, 2022, shows the rover successfully expelled the remaining large fragments of cored rock from a sample tube held in its drill. Perseverance's Sample Tube Looks Clean: This image, taken by the Mastcam-Z camera aboard NASA's Perseverance Mars rover on Jan. However, Mastcam-Z imaging of 261’s interior after this subsequent maneuver showed it still contained some sample. Later that same Martian day, the bit was positioned vertically over “Issole” (the rock that provided this latest core) to see if additional sample would fall out under the force of gravity. The imagery from the experiment shows a small amount of sample material falling out of the drill bit/sample tube. Our remarkable Mastcam-Z instrument (which has video capability previously used to document some of Ingenuity’s flights) captured the event. After the robotic arm oriented the drill with Sample Tube 261’s open end angled around 9 degrees below horizontal, the rover’s drill spindle rotated and then extended. 15, the team performed an experiment using Perseverance’s rotary-percussive drill. The imagery was collected by the rover’s Mastcam-Z instrument on Jan. Perseverance Expels Rock Fragments: A portion of a cored-rock sample is ejected from the rotary percussive drill on NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover. ![]() It is interesting to note that some of the initial trials performed on our testbed here on Earth indicate that the location of the two leftover pebbles may not pose a significant problem with bit carousel operation, but we are continuing analysis and testing to confirm this. The other two pebbles, located below the bit carousel, remain. Tuesday night we also received the second set of under-rover images, which show two new pebbles on the surface, indicating the ejected pebbles made it fully through bit carousel and back onto the surface of Mars as planned. WATSON imaging showed the two upper pebbles were ejected during the process. ![]() Later that same Martian day, we rotated the bit carousel about 75 degrees before returning it back to its original position. 17, the WATSON camera imaged the bit carousel and its pebbles – and also took images underneath the rover to establish just what was down there before any recovery strategies were applied. The five images that make up the GIF were obtained by the rover’s WATSON imager on Jan. Rotating Perseverance's Bit Carousel: An annotated GIF depicts a rotational test of Perseverance’s bit carousel in which two of four rock fragments were ejected. Our second success: We appear to have removed most – if not all – of the cored rock that remained in Sample Tube 261. This is great news, as these small chunks of debris are believed to be the cause of the unsuccessful transfer of the drill bit and sample tube into the carousel back on Dec. Our first success: The upper two pebbles were ejected from the bit carousel during a test. The team has made good progress implementing the initial recovery steps outlined in last week’s blog. ![]()
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