I am going to continue the story from above of
Opportunity and its twin,
Spirit, two remarkable MER-B rovers that were sent to explore the
Mars. The rover names were selected through a student essay contest. They landed in January 2004, after a six-month spaceflight, with what seemed like a modest 90-day mission to study the environment and determine if
Mars once harbored life. Spirit landed first on January 3rd, and Opportunity landed 21 days later on the other side of the planet.
Each rover was about the size of a golf cart, powered by
solar panels and a little lithium-ion battery, with six sturdy wheels with individual motors that could handle slopes up to 30 degrees. Opportunity successfully made it up to 32 degrees. They carried temperature-controlled electronics and computers in their bodies, with a navigational camera and a panoramic camera mounted on top to capture the Martian landscape. Each rover had a
robotic arm that could press different tools including a an imager, magnet, rock abrasion tool, and a variety of spectrometers against Martian rocks and soil to study what they were made of.
Spirit's journey proved remarkably impressive, operating for 6 years, 2 months and 19 days which was approximately 25 times longer than planned. It covered 4.8 miles of the Martian surface.
Major Discoveries and Achievements
- Captured panoramic views of the landing site near Gusev Crater and sent over 124,000 images back to earth.
- Discovered silica deposits potentially indicating ancient hot springs.
- Filmed dust devils in motion across the Martian landscape.
- Identified goethite, carbonates, and clay deposits which provided evidence of past water presence.
Mission Extensions and Challenges
- In January 2004, NASA temporarily lost contact with the rover due to a flash memory malfunction. Engineers successfully reestablished communication and transmitted a software update, allowing Spirit to resume normal operations by February 5th.
- In March 2005, passing dust devils swept accumulated debris from Spirit's solar panels, boosting power generation from 60% to 93% and significantly extending the rover's mission lifetime.
- In early 2007, both Spirit and Opportunity received new software that enabled autonomous decision-making capabilities, including selective image transmission and independent control of the robotic arm.
- Throughout much of Earth's summer of 2007, both rovers faced massive dust storms that reduced their operational effectiveness due to diminished solar power generation.
How It Ended
- In May 2009, Spirit became stuck in soft soil.
- NASA abandoned efforts to free the rover in January 2010, repurposing it as a stationary research platform.
- Its new mission was to study tiny wobbles in Mars' rotation to determine whether the planet's core is liquid or solid.
- Engineers engineers determined that the rover needed to be angled slightly northward to maintain operations but were unable to achieve this positioning.
- Spirit ceased transmitting data in March 2010.
- The mission was officially declared over on May 25, 2011, after recovery efforts failed.
Opportunity's adventure turned out to be
truly extraordinary. The rover explored Mars for 5111 sols (14 years, 138 days in Earth time), setting the record for the longest distance traveled on another planet: 28.06 miles. The rover sent over 217,000 pictures back to NASA. Not bad for a mission that was supposed to last just three months.
Major Discoveries and Achievements
- March 2005: Traveled out of Eagle Crater after extensive exploration and sent back images of the landing site.
- 2005: Discovered a basketball-sized iron-nickel meteorite.
- 2006: Arrived at Victoria Crater and sent back images from the rim.
- 2007: Faced major dust storms that limited operational capabilities.
- Post-storms: Continued mission and traveled into Victoria Crater to study rocks and soil.
- 2008-2011: Embarked on 13-mile journey to Endeavour Crater, arriving in August 2011.
- 2012-2013: Worked around Matijevic Hill overlooking Endeavour Crater, analyzing rocks and soil.
- February 7, 2017: Passed the 27-mile (44-kilometer) mark on its odometer.
Mission Extensions and Challenges
- September 4, 2014: Complete reformat of flash memory due to numerous computer resets.
- September 2014: NASA announced ninth mission extension, adding two more years with a mission to nearby Marathon Valley.
- December 2014: Experienced problems with saving telemetry in flash memory.
- May 2015: NASA configured the rover to operate in RAM-only mode.
- October 2016: Began two-year extended mission to investigate Bitterroot Valley on western rim of Endeavour Crater.
- May 2017: Reached Perseverance Valley, its next major scientific objective.
How It Ended
- June 2018: Caught in massive planetary dust storm.
- Sent final communication reporting low battery and covered solar panels.
- After a month in the storm with dust-covered panels, mission controllers feared insufficient power might prevent reactivation.
The bond between these rovers and their team was special. For those first 90 days, the team began a tradition. They would play a different song during the wake-up of the rovers to start the rovers' day. They gave Opportunity a nickname, calling her "Oppy." When she stopped communicating,
they did not give up easily. For months, they sent over a thousand commands, hoping the Martian winds might clear her solar panels. There is even a Spotify playlist out there of all the
songs they played in the mission control room to give hope to the engineers. But on February 13, 2019, NASA had to say goodbye. In a touching final gesture, they played Billie Holiday's "I'll Be Seeing You" during their last transmission to Oppy.
When journalist Jacob Margolis shared his interpretation of Oppy's last readings: "
my battery is low and it's getting dark" It struck a chord with people around the world. They celebrated her achievements through art, memorials, and tributes, and mourned the loss of the small rover that had far exceeded its expected lifespan.
This is a condensed version of
Neil Hilborn's spoken word poem celebrating and saying goodbye to the Opportunity rover. I have shortened it to comply with
E2's copyright guidelines. To experience the complete original performance, please visit the YouTube link provided below:
On Mars, the last words of the Opportunity rover were, "my battery is low and it's getting dark."
Sure, they weren't words, they were readings, but the reading were low battery, locked solar panels. For a month, there had been a storm, and her solar panels were shrouded in stellar debris. She wouldn't have enough power to start back up once the sun returned. Her. The NASA engineers called the rover her. Affectionately, they called her Oppy.. this little robot so far from home was only supposed to last for six months and here she was, 15 years later, finding evidence of water and singing herself happy birthday.
She was a sparrow in a blue ocean.
Oppy, small metal dog. Hope on six wheels.
Daydream that maybe we are not alone.
Oppy, how'd you do it?
I get lonely halfway between my house and Chicago.
If an object flies overhead snapping pictures, what's the right message to scroll in the dirt?
What SOS will say that I was here?
Oppy, where do we go when our work is done?
And how do we know when it's time?
The NASA engineers reaching toward their silent friend played her songs through the radio.
Rocket Man.
Space Oddity.
Here Comes The Sun.
She couldn't hear. She never could. She's a robot after all. But they still wanted their buddy to know how alone she never was.
"Opportunity, We miss you."
"Wake up. We love you."
"We do."
https://science.nasa.gov/mission/mars-exploration-rovers-spirit-and-opportunity/
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/56XIGiEUI4a0lOwoHRYOXI
https://www.space.com/41434-mars-rover-opportunity-wakeup-music-playlist.html
https://youtu.be/8FcIzGfDcfI?si=8aEghbzisgu3LVMM