This Is the Last Image the Spirit Mars Rover Ever Saw (just released)

Despite NASA’s attempts at anthropomorphism, the Mars rovers do not talk, so Spirit was unable to utter any last words. But we did get to share its final view. Behold, our departed rover’s last Martian vista, the Columbia Hills.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/ae3e0f11d952.jpg[/atsimg]
Now it provides the backdrop for Spirit's final resting spot.

This was the last panorama Spirit transmitted to Earth, on its 2,175th sol on Mars. (A sol is a Martian day, and it is 3 percent longer than an Earth day.) The rover’s final transmission came just 35 sols later, on March 22, 2010. With its wheels mired in soft sand, it was unable to turn its solar panels toward the sun to gather sufficient sun through a particularly harsh Martian winter.

NASA shared this image through its Astronomy Photo of the Day. The panorama includes the Columbia Hills, each named for the astronauts who perished in the 2003 Columbia accident, and a hill nicknamed von Braun. That’s the hill with the light-colored peak near the top center of the image, explain astronomers Robert Nemiroff of Michigan Tech and Jerry Bonnell of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

Source: www.popsci.com...
Link for large pic: apod.nasa.gov...


What an awesome shot. I am sure there will be a few more in time.

Look at the surface. hard to believe there might be life on that planet-in some form or another. Or that there ever was any life on the planet. I sure hope I am alive when we actually land on Mars.

It will be interesting when they go to this "final resting spot" and the darn thing not be there. Even worse if little footprints are around.

An example of what can/could go wrong... so far from earth. You better have your A game on.

Well, I guess it took them so long to release it as they had to "study" it for themselves. Some may say time to alter whatever they don't want us to see.

reply to post by anon72

An example of what can/could go wrong... so far from earth. You better have your A game on.

I believe they had their A,B, and C games on with Spirit:

The rover completed its planned 90-sol mission. Aided by cleaning events that resulted in higher power from its solar panels, Spirit went on to function effectively over twenty times longer than NASA planners expected following mission completion.

Source

spirit has provided some amazing photos. I too hope to be around still kicking when someone, probably Russia or China, lands a human on Mars. It's a pity, if we stayed on track after Apollo we'd already have been there.

The 2nd link takes you to the pic and you can zoom in on things.

Is it me or does it look like a road, cleared pathway, whatever just to the left and then forward of the machine?

Look at the rocks on either side of the pathway... How did that happen if the rocks laying around were spewed from a volcano type activity? I would think they would cover all over and not leaving a path?

Maybe wind blew sand against a formed lip..

reply to post by anon72


Awe my poor little Spirit rover. This was my favorite one. I loved the images Spirit sent us! AMAZING! Some of my favs came from Spirit.

This is for sure a great last pic from Spirit.

I look forward to Curiosity being sent off to Mars in November! I shall watch it go up right here from the KSC! The new rover looks very cool and for some reason makes me think of Johnny 5 from Short Circuit! lol


Cool post

reply to post by anon72


Or maybe its just the result of the random dispersion of nature, which would bear evidence in that we don't see a evenly space grid network of stars in the sky, or it could just be a slope in the terrane.

reply to post by Illustronic


Hmm, perhaps ramdon nature. I guess that is a more plausable reason then Alien roads etc.

but, one has to believe in something so... I say a Martian highway.

reply to post by anon72

They just ran out of funds before they could get too far beyond initial grading of the roadbed. The whole thing was just pork anyway, a earmark on a bill in the Gusev State Congress.

Originally posted by anon72
Well, I guess it took them so long to release it as they had to "study" it for themselves. Some may say time to alter whatever they don't want us to see.

The raw images have all been available for a year now, the newly released image is just a processed stitched panoramic. Technically this is not the last thing the rover ever saw either, they were exaggerating about that. This is the last panorama the rover ever took, but its final full frame image from the panoramic camera was this, take on Sol 2190, not on or before 2175:
marsrover.nasa.gov...
They may have intended the images recorded that day to be incorporated with others into a larger version of the above panorama, but sadly Spirit never got the chance to take it.

reply to post by ngchunter


I love it when folks who knows this stuff chimes in.

Thank you. flag if I could

Thnx for the post!

Curiosity is next - I can't wait for her o get to the mars.

Does the rover have something for cleaning it's own lenses?
It's hard to imagine such a clear image when everything pictured is covered in dust, including the rover.

reply to post by jaden_x


Excellent point my friend.

I hope a ATSer NASA type wonders by.

I will go look in the mean time. I would assume so-with the clear pics that we do have.

I saw National Geographic is now running this story today.

Nice to be ahead of them.....

I was hoping the ATS Mars experts would chime in. Anyone?