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The Opportunity rover is withal taking an extended nap on Mars, just NASA has caught sight of the little robot. With the aid of the HiRISE photographic camera aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), NASA has pinpointed Opportunity's location on the slopes of Perseverance Valley. Knowing where the rover ended up is a nice development, but information technology doesn't get u.s. much closer to reviving Opportunity.

NASA'south Opportunity is ancient by the standards of a Mars rover. It touched down on Mars in 2004, and has traveled more than 28 miles thus far. Opportunity operated continuously until June 2022. That's when the plucky little rover was overtaken past a massive Martian dust storm. The image from MRO above (click for large version) was captured from 166 miles above the planet's surface. The white box marks an surface area 154 feet across (47 meters). Opportunity is the small dot right in the center.

Mars occasionally experiences global dust storms, and the one over this past summertime was especially severe. According to NASA, the tau (a measure out of how much lite is blocked) reached more than 10. Without dust storms, the tau of Mars' atmosphere hovers around 1. NASA captured the MRO paradigm of Opportunity on September 20th when the Tau was again just 1.3.

The new image shows Opportunity where information technology stopped when NASA put information technology in hibernation mode several months ago. Since Opportunity is solar powered, NASA knew it would exist unable to operate during the dust tempest. The team hoped information technology would retain plenty ability to keep its heaters and communication organisation running, but that looks increasingly unlikely now.

According to NASA, the terrain around Opportunity looks redder than usual for that region. That could indicate dust from the storm has fallen in a thick layer across the Perseverance Valley. If a layer of dust has covered Opportunity's solar panels, information technology may never wake upwardly. Information technology'due south been several months of no contact from the rover, indicating it never managed to power back upwards later on the storm settled. Without ability for its heaters, the batteries may have become inoperable. And so, it might not even matter if the solar panels are clear at this betoken.

Earlier this month, NASA fix a 45-day deadline for Opportunity to wake up. If the rover does not miraculously awaken and ping Earth past then, NASA volition consider the mission over. Not everyone is happy with that decision, merely Opportunity'southward chances are admittedly depression.

Now read: The Martian Dust Storm Is Clearing, just Opportunity Remains Silent, NASA Celebrates five Years of Curiosity With New Mars Rover Video, and Strange 'cauliflower' rocks on Mars may hide clues to ancient life