NASA's Spirit rover has run into more trouble: On the way to the north-facing slopes on the peak called McCool in the Columbia Hills – and between outcrops called Oberth and Korolev, Spirit encountered an impassable, sandy area, which threatened to bog down the hobbled craft before it could reach a more sunny location from which to ride out the approaching Martian winter.
To increase the sunlight falling on its solar power cells, Spirit's handlers at Jet Propulsion laboratory redirected the rover to a closer north-facing slope in an area known as Low Ridge or Low Ridge Haven, about 20 meters (65 feet) away from its position on April 5, on Martian sol 802 of its mission.
Mission controllers said despite the loss of its right-front wheel to mechanical failure, Spirit now continues to make progress in that direction after escaping the sandy area on sol 799, on April 2.
Spirit sol-by-sol highlights:
