PASADENA, Calif. -- NASAs Spirit Mars rover continues to be healthy, with engineers here at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) reporting they have established direct-to-Earth communications from the robot. Doing so is critical to the rest of the rovers mission.
Meanwhile, caution is the watchword in preparing Spirit for egress onto Gusev Crater terrain in the near future.
Spirit is now held tight on its lander platform with cables that must be cut to free the rover, let it stand upright on outstretched wheels. That process could take more than a week to accomplish.
"We want to turn the rover into what it wants to be," said Mark Adler, Deputy Mission Manager for the Mars Exploration Rover (MER) program.
Just like the simulations
Spirit mission controllers report that Spirit bounced and rolled for several minutes following its initial impact at 8:35 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (PST) on Saturday, January 3.
Ground controllers were elated to find that Spirit had come to full stop with its base petal down. Thats an ideal position to move forward in getting the rover to eventually move off the landing platform and start Mars surface operations.
JPLs Miguel San Martin, Attitude Control Lead for the MER effort said the entire entry, descent and landing system of Spirit "performed beautifullyjust like the simulations."
Assessments are underway to gauge how well hardware worked as the craft dove toward Mars. What is learned from this reconstruction of data is invaluable in possibly adjusting the January 24 plunge onto Mars of the Opportunity rover.
Flat race track
Spirit's cameras and a mineral-identifying infrared instrument are first to examine the surrounding terrain prior to the rover wheeling itself onto Mars. On Monday, the first color panorama taken by Spirit from Gusev Crater is anticipated.
Scientists already see great science within initial patches of photos sent to date from Spirit.
"I see a flat race track," Wendy Calvin, a participating scientist on the mission from the University of Nevada in Reno told SPACE.com . "Its flatter than I expectedits a lot less rough than I expected, she commented.
Exactly where Spirit now rests on Mars is an ongoing "lively debate," Calvin said.
Stark splendor
NASA picked Spirit's landing site, based on evidence from Mars orbiters that Gusev Crater may have held a lake long ago. A long, deep valley, apparently carved by ancient flows of water, leads into Gusev.
The crater itself is a basin the size of Connecticut created by an asteroid or comet impact early in Mars' history. Spirit's task is to spend the next three months roving for clues in rocks and soil about whether the past environment at this part of Mars was watery and suitable to sustain life.
Initial reviews of what Spirit pictures suggest mimic the "magnificent desolation" voiced by Apollo 11 astronaut, Buzz Aldrin, in setting foot on the Moon in July 1969.
There is also stark splendor at Gusev Crater on Mars.
"Its beautiful in the same way that the desert is beautiful," said Julie Townsend, an avionics engineer at JPL on the MER effort. "Its a beautiful vacantness."
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