NASA’s Curiosity rover has lately begun a brand new chapter in its journey on Mars after getting into the “Uyuni” quadrangle, a 1.5 km by 1.5 km map grid with a reputation after the Bolivian city close to the world’s largest salt flats. The transition follows after the rover carried out an roughly 48-metre drive from the Altadena drill website. With new geology to discover and an expanded set of experiments, Curiosity’s journey via this area has the potential to return recent observations into Mars’ historical environmental circumstances.

Curiosity Explores Mars’ Uyuni Quad, Begins New Examine of Rock Layers, Craters, and Historic Climates

As per a mission update from Lauren Edgar, planetary geologist on the USGS Astrogeology Science Centre, the transition to the Uyuni quad is important. Every Mars quadrangle is known as after an Earth location with below 100,000 individuals and attracts on regional geology for goal naming. Uyuni and close by Atacama websites—identified for Mars analogue analysis and excessive environments—will now lend their names to the options explored on this section. The present sol plan entails a mix of contact science, visible imaging, and motion, all tailor-made to grasp the bedrock composition and floor processes on this drier area of Mount Sharp.

The rover’s robotic arm will deploy its APXS and MAHLI instruments to review a nodular bedrock goal dubbed “Flamingo”. Distant sensing consists of Mastcam mosaics of “Los Patos”, a potential influence crater, and “La Lava”, a darkish rock. These photos will doc sediment transport options and inform ChemCam’s upcoming LIBS firing at a bedrock spot named “Tacos”. An extended-distance RMI mosaic of “Mishe Mokwa” butte will additional analyse sediment layers.

Following the science block, Curiosity will journey roughly 56 metres southwest and accumulate post-drive imagery to tell the following sol plan. The following day will probably be devoted to calibration and environmental monitoring actions through Mastcam and Navcam, notably targeted on mud and cloud motion within the Martian ambiance.

Researchers are keen to review what these formations can reveal of previous Martian climates because the group works towards bigger boxwork exposures. The Uyuni quad will carry collectively distant worlds via a frequent geological story utilizing names and formations primarily based on our personal geologic brethren on Earth.