Q: when is driving 35 Km an incredible feat? [View all]
A: When it is done on another planet, by a vehicle not designed to go more than 1 Km!
by NANCY ATKINSON on AUGUST 31, 2012
Meanwhile, back in Meridiani Planum … the Opportunity rover keeps on trucking, and has now exceeded over 35 kilometers (21.75 miles) of driving on its odometer! Quite an accomplishment for the Energizer Bunny of Mars rovers, now operating for 3,057 Martian sols. As the MER team says, “Not bad for a vehicle designed for only about 1 kilometer (.6 miles) of distance and 90 sols (days) of lifetime.”
Oppy is now moving south along the inboard edge of Cape York on the rim of Endeavour Crater surveying exposed outcrop in search of phyllosilicate clay minerals that have been detected from orbit. These outcrops are quite interesting and attention-grabbing; here’s a look in color from Stuart Atkinson:
Read more: http://www.universetoday.com/97146/opportunity-rover-tops-35-kilometers-of-driving/
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