Mars Rovers Mission Update

Officials briefed reporters on the status of the Spirit and Opportunity Mars Exploration Rovers missions. They also reviewed several images transmitted showing the locations and operations of the rovers and scientific readings, featuring 3-D images. On Wednesday, Spirit broke its own record set earlier in the week for the longest one-day drive on Mars, ending its day near a cluster of rocks dubbed “Stone Council.” Opportunity has been surveying a rock outcrop along the inner slope of the crater in which it landed. Both rovers have made atmospheric observations revealing rapid temperature changes in the lower atmosphere. Ms. Klug described an assortment of programs giving students first-hand opportunities to work with information from NASA Mars missions and showed video of some programs. Dr. Calvin spoke about the program in which she was mentoring Ms. Thiessen, a high school student. Following their remarks they answered questions from reporters. close