Sols 1269-1270: Approaching Naukluft Plateau

1 March 2016

Here is Monday’s blog post (can we blame the delay on leap day?). Curiosity is currently making her way toward the Naukluft Plateau, and Monday’s plan was full of driving and remote sensing. On the first sol, Curiosity will acquire ChemCam and Mastcam observations of the target “Swartpunt.” Then we’ll drive toward the Naukluft Plateau, and acquire post-drive imaging to prepare for future targeting and document the Murray formation along the way. The second sol includes a number of ChemCam calibration activities, and a Navcam movie to monitor the atmosphere above Mount Sharp. We’ll also acquire a large Mastcam mosaic to study the stratigraphy exposed on the east side of the Naukluft Plateau.

I’ve been working MER operations this week, so it’s been fun to check in and see what’s happening on the other side of the planet!

By Lauren Edgar

--Lauren is a Research Geologist at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center and a member of the MSL science team.