Someone has cleaned Curiosity on Mars

I was looking at SOLs images os Mars, when I noticed how dirty Curiosity was, I started to look for more photos of the Curiosity in SOLs at random, and I realized that at first it was very dirty, but in the new SOLs it was clean as the first day...

I was surprised by that so I began to look at more images of the curiosty until I noticed that it had areas where it seemed that someone had touched it.

Give me your opinion.

SOL 696:

0696ML0029480940304279E01_DXXX



After almost 2 years, the dirty was thick and growing.

SOL 744:

This is when I started to notice areas manipulated by someone:

0744ML0031960040205734E01_DXXX



How did that happen? Just in that zone is like someone touched it. The others parts of Curiosity are dirty like always.

SOL 758:

In here is starting to get dirty again:

0758ML0032540040400064E01_DXXX-br2



And then the weird thing.

SOL 1492:

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Curiosity is clean like the first day. How is this possible? Is raining on Mars?

I'm missing something?

a reply to: Clonevandal

Martian dust is like talcum powder. The rover doesn't look clean at all. But at times the wind has cleaned the dust off in places.

Edit:

Wiki, cleaning events

Good observation, it really seems cleaner. Don´t know what to think about this! Anyone?

originally posted by: Clonevandal

How did that happen? Just in that zone is like someone touched it.

The cable brushed against the metal.

I'd like to what kind of wire ties they se to hold up so well

Are the numbers ongoing? I mean, would no. 300 be older than no. 600, guaranteed?

a reply to: swanne

All over it? The cable can´t move all around, and you can see the cable looks cleaner, too. Come on, take a closer look.
Disclaimer: No, I´m not saying it could not be cleaned by natural means (wind on mars?)

Edit: Never mind, you were talking about the "touched" part. But still, look at the other photo.

originally posted by: mikell
I'd like to what kind of wire ties they se to hold up so well

You know, that´s what I thought, too. It looks like it´s some sort of thin wire, like the drilleable ones around new bought cables.

Nice catch. Very interesting. There was a thread I saw about Mars Anomalies and in one photo it looked like the shadow of a person that was working on the rover.

A long time ago there was a story that a person working at JPL or NASA that had a camera feed from the main control area in another room. She claimed to see 2 beings (that looked like humans in space suits and helmets walking toward the rover. Their feed quit working suddenly and she went to the control room but the door was locked and had paper covering the window within the door. It wasn't locked with paper blocking the window until that occurred. I also have no idea what came of the thread.

Some people were talking about a possible breakaway civilization and others a possible military program that isn't supposed to be known.

a reply to: intrptr

sounds reasonable!

a reply to: verschickter

Disclaimer: No, I´m not saying it could not be cleaned by natural means (wind on mars?)

Wind on Mars can be 60 mph (?), but due to thin atmosphere, 'feels like' a soft breeze. Due to lo gravity, dust 'weighs' less than on earth and is easier borne aloft. So it is always settling out from the atmosphere and blown away during 'storms'.

a reply to: intrptr
There are dust devils seen as well on Mars.

originally posted by: verschickter
a reply to: swanne

All over it? The cable can´t move all around, and you can see the cable looks cleaner, too. Come on, take a closer look.

originally posted by: mikell
I'd like to what kind of wire ties they se to hold up so well

You know, that´s what I thought, too. It looks like it´s some sort of thin wire, like the drilleable ones around new bought cables.

If the cable is cleaner, and the metal is also cleaner, perhaps that's because they both rubbed against each other at some point in time. I think it's actually pretty probable the cable did move around, especially given the fact that the base of the cable seems to be on a pivoting point.

Each time the whole thing would pivot to our left, the cable would loosen and brush against the metal.

The mark on the metal is obviously made by something repeatedly making small strokes on it. Given that the strokes are thick and full, they were probably made by the heavy insulation of the cable.

a reply to: intrptr
Due to the atmosphere being so thin, I conclude it would take longer for the dust to clean up as it would on earth. Probably by the factor x = earth´s atmospheric density / mars´s atmospheric density. Just a thougtplay.

a reply to: swanne

I only later saw you were reffering to the "has been touched" picture...

a reply to: intrptr

It's not something airborne. The marks are made by something thick, repeatedly brushing against the metal with the same force, and constantly in the same area.

The boundaries of the marks are too clear - the cause is something which is thick and ductile, like an eraser.

a reply to: verschickter

Hehe no worries, happens to me too!

originally posted by: spirit_horse
a reply to: intrptr
There are dust devils seen as well on Mars.

The short attention span version... a bit more in depth...

This would really clean the lenses...

originally posted by: swanne
a reply to: intrptr

It's not something airborne. The marks are made by something thick, repeatedly brushing against the metal with the same force, and constantly in the same area.

The boundaries of the marks are too clear - the cause is something which is thick and ductile, like an eraser.

More like, the dust piles up and is shaken lose, falling off during vibration from movement.

However, although I have provided an explanation for the marks, I fail to find a confident explanation for the difference between these two pictures:





In the second picture, Curiosity is cleaner as a whole. I can see it both on the grain of the main cable and the shine of the camera-closest loop of cable, and it's also visible on the tube (the marks seem gone).

Mars has low atmospheric pressure. It's possible that a low pressure storm somehow vacuumed / blew the dust away.

a reply to: Clonevandal

It looks fake to me. That's just my opinion though.

Or aliens were found messing with it, and they had to cut that part of the film out.

a reply to: swanne

The cable brushed against the metal.

Maybe... but I think those cables are mounted to prevent them 'shifting around'. Abrasion could wear the insulation causing failures over time.

Something like... cable tie mounts.