Dust Accumulation and Cleaning of the MER Spirit Solar Array
Abstract
The solar array of the NASA Mars Exploration Rover (MER) Spirit was expected to accumulate so much dust after ninety Martian days (sols) that it could no longer provide enough energy to guarantee continued surface operations. Instead, due in part to low dust accumulation rates and numerous dust cleaning events, Spirit carried out surface operations for over 2200 sols (over three Mars years). During this time period, the rover experienced four Martian winters and several dust storms. Because the sources of solar energy loss are known, the solar array energy output offers a tool to quantitatively estimate the loading and aeolian removal of dust from the solar array each sol. We will discuss the accumulation of dust on the solar panels as a proxy for dust movement at Gusev Crater over the course of the entire mission.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2012
- Bibcode:
- 2012AGUFM.P23A1911H
- Keywords:
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- 5405 PLANETARY SCIENCES: SOLID SURFACE PLANETS / Atmospheres;
- 6225 PLANETARY SCIENCES: SOLAR SYSTEM OBJECTS / Mars