Now A Stationary Research Platform, NASA's Mars Rover Spirit Starts a New Chapter in Red Planet Scientific Studies

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Guy Webster 818-354-6278
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov

Dwayne Brown 202-358-1726
NASA Headquarters, Washington
dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov

NEWS RELEASE 2010-030 Jan. 26, 2010

NOW A STATIONARY RESEARCH PLATFORM, NASA'S MARS ROVER SPIRIT STARTS A
NEW CHAPTER IN RED PLANET SCIENTIFIC STUDIES

The full version of this story with accompanying images is at:
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2010-030&cid=release_2010-030

WASHINGTON -- After six years of unprecedented exploration of the Red Planet, NASA's Mars
Exploration Rover Spirit no longer will be a fully mobile robot. NASA has designated the once-
roving scientific explorer a stationary science platform after efforts during the past several months to
free it from a sand trap have been unsuccessful.

The venerable robot's primary task in the next few weeks will be to position itself to combat the
severe Martian winter. If Spirit survives, it will continue conducting significant new science from its
final location. The rover's mission could continue for several months to years.

"Spirit is not dead; it has just entered another phase of its long life," said Doug McCuistion, director
of the Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "We told the world last year
that attempts to set the beloved robot free may not be successful. It looks like Spirit's current location
on Mars will be its final resting place."

Ten months ago, as Spirit was driving south beside the western edge of a low plateau called Home
Plate, its wheels broke through a crusty surface and churned into soft sand hidden underneath.

After Spirit became embedded, the rover team crafted plans for trying to get the six-wheeled vehicle
free using its five functioning wheels – the sixth wheel quit working in 2006, limiting Spirit's
mobility. The planning included experiments with a test rover in a sandbox at NASA's Jet Propulsion
Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., plus analysis, modeling and reviews. In November, another wheel quit
working, making a difficult situation even worse.

Recent drives have yielded the best results since Spirit became embedded. However, the coming
winter mandates a change in strategy. It is mid-autumn at the solar-powered robot's home on Mars.
Winter will begin in May. Solar energy is declining and expected to become insufficient to power
further driving by mid-February. The rover team plans to use those remaining potential drives for
improving the rover's tilt. Spirit currently tilts slightly toward the south. The winter sun stays in the
northern sky, so decreasing the southward tilt would boost the amount of sunshine on the rover's solar
panels.

"We need to lift the rear of the rover, or the left side of the rover, or both," said Ashley Stroupe, a
rover driver at JPL. "Lifting the rear wheels out of their ruts by driving backward and slightly uphill
will help. If necessary, we can try to lower the front right of the rover by attempting to drop the right-
front wheel into a rut or dig it into a hole."

At its current angle, Spirit probably would not have enough power to keep communicating with Earth
through the Martian winter. Even a few degrees of improvement in tilt might make enough difference
to enable communication every few days.

"Getting through the winter will all come down to temperature and how cold the rover electronics
will get," said John Callas, project manager at JPL for Spirit and its twin rover, Opportunity. "Every
bit of energy produced by Spirit's solar arrays will go into keeping the rover's critical electronics
warm, either by having the electronics on or by turning on essential heaters."

Even in a stationary state, Spirit continues scientific research.

"There's a class of science we can do only with a stationary vehicle that we had put off during the
years of driving," said Steve Squyres, a researcher at Cornell University and principal investigator for
Spirit and Opportunity. "Degraded mobility does not mean the mission ends abruptly. Instead, it lets
us transition to stationary science."

One stationary experiment Spirit has begun studies tiny wobbles in the rotation of Mars to gain
insight about the planet's core. This requires months of radio-tracking the motion of a point on the
surface of Mars to calculate long-term motion with an accuracy of a few inches.

"If the final scientific feather in Spirit's cap is determining whether the core of Mars is liquid or solid,
that would be wonderful -- it's so different from the other knowledge we've gained from Spirit," said
Squyres.

Tools on Spirit's robotic arm can study variations in the composition of nearby soil, which has been
affected by water. Stationary science also includes watching how wind moves soil particles and
monitoring the Martian atmosphere.

Spirit and Opportunity landed on Mars in January 2004. They have been exploring for six years, far
surpassing their original 90-day mission. Opportunity currently is driving toward a large crater called
Endeavor and continues to make scientific discoveries. It has driven approximately 12 miles and
returned more than 133,000 images.

JPL manages the rovers for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. For more
information about Spirit and Opportunity, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/rovers .

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