Lifting off from launch pad SLC-17B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS), Opportunity began its six month journey to Mars as part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program.
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Opportunity also gets its verve from solar panels located on its back, which provides the energy the rover uses for its explorations on Mars.
Watch the eight minute time lapse video from the surface of Mars here, courtesy of NASA’s Opportunity rover. The twin systems were supposed to cross Mars’ land in search of possible water traces.
Steve Squyres, Opportunity principal investigator, said in a statement that the rover Opportunity’s mission was not about setting distance records.
Astronomers did not expect the two investigating robots to perform so well in space, given that their physical features were not adapted to the planet’s characteristics. As opposed to its fellow co-work, Spirit, who functioned until getting stuck in 2009 and ceased communications in 2010, Opportunity remains active. Luckily, that’s not a dealbreaker for the aging rover, officials said – it just requires some adjustment.
The rover is operating in a mode that avoids use of the type of onboard memory – non-volatile flash memory – that can retain data even when power is turned off overnight.
There are tons of scientific information that NASA details quite accurately on the mission’s website, but this video is a good reminder of how big of a deal this rover’s trip truly is.
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The prototype will also help to deploy from a 3U CubeSat (miniature satellite (U-class spacecraft) that is used for space research) in the aeroshell of a future Mars rover. A reformatting of the flash memory earlier this year temporarily slowed the frequency of flash-induced computer resets, but the reset occurrences increased again later in the spring. As the rover continued to operate far beyond expectations for its lifespan, scientists chose the rim of Endeavour Crater as a long-term destination.
