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Spirit Close to "Troy," Sol 1871

July 16, 2009
This scene combines five frames taken by the navigation camera on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit during the 1,871st Martian day, or sol, of Spirit's mission on Mars (April 8, 2009). It spans 180 degrees, with east on the left, south at the center

This scene combines five frames taken by the navigation camera on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit during the 1,871st Martian day, or sol, of Spirit's mission on Mars (April 8, 2009). It spans 180 degrees, with east on the left, south at the center and west on the right.

This view is from the position Spirit reached with a drive of 7 meters (23 feet) southeastward earlier on Sol 1871. The drive brought Spirit to within about 2 meters (7 feet) of the location, subsequently dubbed "Troy," where it would begin to become embedded after its next drive. Other issues, including an amnesia-like event and unexplained computer resets, resulted in no driving attempts after Sol 1871 until Sol 1886 (April 23, 2009).

The western edge of the low plateau called "Home Plate" appears on the left side of this view. A ridge informally named "Tsiolkovsky" is on the right. Behind the saddle between Home Plate and Tsiolkovsky is a mound capped with light-toned rock and called "Von Braun," a possible destination for Spirit to investigate in the future.

Spirit was driving toward Von Braun when the rover became embedded in soft soil at a site called "Troy" by Sol 1899 (May 6, 2009). The soft soil at Troy was covered with a darker layer before Spirit's wheels broke through that top layer and revealed lighter material.

This view is presented as a cylindrical projection with geometric seam correction.

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