Movement on Mars

It looks like there has been movement of the small rocks below and to the right of the arrow. Also looks like there could be a hole in the soil. My guess would be the laser zapped a hole and moved a few rocks. The hole seems large for the laser though. The laser almost always shoots a line of holes and not just one. What do you all think?

These are ChemCam images from Sol 2297. They are image CR0_601421485PRC_F0731482CCAM05295L2 and image CR0_601422476PRC_F0731482CCAM05295L1

a reply to: LookingAtMars

Looks like a little critter dug out of its hole there. Or maybe the rover arm did a little diddling there?

a reply to: Namdru

If the rover did anything it shot a blast with the laser. It seems big for the laser though. Soft soil could make a big hole I guess. Trying to get the side by side image I made to load but having problems

a reply to: LookingAtMars

To me it looks like....more metaphor....more double meaning code.

The goal should be to establish who the people posting new topics on websites really are. Are they robots/AI? Are they Angels? Jokers? How does it all really work?

a reply to: FlukeSkywalker

Afraid that went over my head, can you explain?

a reply to: LookingAtMars


Ummm...there’s more than one disturbance area...the long rock in the center left of the image has soil and pebbles removed at it’s extreme right side...you can see the scalloped end in the second picture...while it’s covered in the first...

So...we have a disturbance at the base and center of the large upper rock and then the one I just described...







YouSir

a reply to: YouSir

Good eye, I didn't notice that. Maybe they were shooting the laser in the area or something crawled out of the hole and moved some stuff around

originally posted by: LookingAtMars
a reply to: YouSir

Good eye, I didn't notice that. Maybe they were shooting the laser in the area or something crawled out of the hole and moved some stuff around

Ummm...I was wondering if perhaps the heat from the laser might have caused a sudden explosive sublimation effect in a small frozen pocket of water...or some such...ness...

But it might have been naked mole rats...





YouSir

Also what is the straight diagonal line at about five o clock on the edge of the image on the left. Looks like the edge of a thin rock.

Also looks like a fiber like strand hanging over the rock just left of center.

An intense laser beam would not disturb and distribute pebbles, would it? it would ablate the target rock and leave a hole, with anything around it in situ. IMHO

Looks like the tiny pebbles got moved by the ChemCam laser. You can see that the disturbance happened in three spots, just like what the lazer produces.

From the Curiosity report: mars.nasa.gov...

Before we reattempt the MAHLI wheel imaging and the drive, Curiosity will use the DRT to brush dust off of the target Bothwell, image it with MAHLI, and collect chemical data overnight with APXS. ChemCam will explore a few more targets here as well, including LIBS observations of the bedrock targets "St Ninians Tombolo," "Stac Pollaidh" and "St Cyrus 3," and a long-distance RMI mosaic of a butte of layered sulfate-bearing rocks towards Mount Sharp.

I'm sure something relevant will pop up on UMSF.

originally posted by: charlyv
An intense laser beam would not disturb and distribute pebbles, would it? it would ablate the target rock and leave a hole, with anything around it in situ. IMHO

If a pebble is small enough, a powerful laser could move it or make it explode.

a reply to: wildespace

I'm sure something relevant will pop up on UMSF.

And I am very sure there will be no mention of critters

Just a gopher. Nothing to get fired up about. Hopefully it is not going to take out the rover, the taxpayers or consumers will have to pay to get another one there.

Fiber-ish looking area, right click on the image and pick view image to see a larger image.

a reply to: rickymouse

The 2020 Rover is about ready to go, so let the gopher have it's fun

originally posted by: wildespace

originally posted by: charlyv
An intense laser beam would not disturb and distribute pebbles, would it? it would ablate the target rock and leave a hole, with anything around it in situ. IMHO

If a pebble is small enough, a powerful laser could move it or make it explode.

I guess I will agree with that, if they are tiny. There does appear to be a large disturbance however, and now there is another area of disturbance. Excellent thread.

Good eye.

Curiosity disturbs small rocks and debris when it moves.

Remember Curiosity is a large rover, compared to what people traditionally think of off-planet rovers.

Somewhere between the size of a golf cart and a typical Miata.

Curiosity can drill, vibrate, and brush an area of interest. The mechanism of drilling has changed since the mission has begun, however. Damage to the percussive drilling mechanism has made MSL change their approach to drilling.

The hole may appear larger than normal due to shifting of loose debris, the current angle of illumination, atmospheric disturbances, and movement of gas pockets.

"Mars has no atmosphere" isn't an exactly correct statement.

Mars does have an "atmosphere" it is just far less dense than our normal Earth atmosphere.

It's not completely absent. Hence, dust storms.

Some of the rocks in pic1 are definitely not in the same spots as pic2.
Looks like the rocks that were moved formed a shadow where you have the arrow pointing in pic2 (to me it looks like a shadows and not a hole)

Some other really strange stuff going on in these...

nice find

On the topic of Mars movement.

What do you guys think of this?
Image 1
mars.jpl.nasa.gov...
Image 2
mars.jpl.nasa.gov...
Image 3
mars.jpl.nasa.gov...
Image 4
mars.jpl.nasa.gov...

There's a rock in the center of this image, that looks to be off-set by more than just the angular difference of Curiosity's movement.

Compare that rock near the center, versus a set point closer to the top portion of these images.

What do you guys think? Just the angles? At a glance, it appears to be more drastic movement, but without knowing the distances involved... It could still just be the angle.
The rock is most prominently noticed in Image 3 and Image 4.

This is from the Left Nav Cam, also on SOL 2297.