Free Astronomy Magazine March-April 2021

MARCH-APRIL 2021 I mage of a target called “Private Joseph Field”, from Opportunity’s microscopic imager, with enhanced color information added from the rover’s panoramic camera. Geochem- ical data indicate the presence of magnesium and iron sulfates. [NASA/ JPL-Caltech/Cornell/USGS/ASU] though it was able to continue re- searching from its location. Spirit then transformed into a fixed scien- tific platform until communications were lost on March 22, 2010. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory attempted to restore contact until May 24, 2011, when NASA announced that efforts to communicate with the rover were the situation, running various simu- lations on Earth in an attempt to solve the problem. The technicians then programmed the rover to per- form a series of maneuvers in an attempt to free it. These efforts con- tinued until January 26, 2010, when NASA announced that the rover was hopelessly stuck in the sand, al-