MARS EXPLORATION

ROVERS

Mars Exploration Rovers 90-day mission Landed in early 2004 One lasted six years The other is still exploring!

Spirit Landing site picked

from geomorphology Crater with channel

running into it

Spirit Plain covered in basalt

rocks Some basalts similar to

Martian meteorites

Spirit Saw dust devils!

http://marsrover.nasa.gov/gallery/press/spirit/20050819a/dd_enhanced_525b-B558R1.gif

http://marsrover.nasa.gov/gallery/press/spirit/20050819a/dd_enhanced_532a-A579R1.gif

Spirit Traveled to the Columbia Hills

Spirit Rocks look like

they’ve been hydrothermally altered!

Evidence of water!

Lava flow covered rocks altered by water

Spirit Got stuck in the sand in the Columbia

Hills Couldn’t turn so solar panels faced

south in winter Haven’t been able to raise it since

March 2010 Gave up trying to talk to Spirit last month

Opportunity Interplanetary hole in one! Rolled into a small crater called Eagle

Crater Sulfate-rich BEDROCK(!!!) right in front

of the rover

Opportunity Landing site chosen by mineralogy High concentration of hematite

Opportunity Embedded in sulfate-rich bedrock –

blueberries! Hematite spherules Evidence of water

Opportunity Found

meteorites on Mars!

Opportunity Traveled to Victoria

Crater Many layers of bedrock

Opportunity On its way to Endeavor

Crater – just surpassed 30 km!

22 km (14 miles) in diameter