14 DAY TRIAL // After losing one of its front wheels, Spirit had put the NASA scientists into a flutter. Would the rover manage to reach the McCool Hill, a safe place for the winter? But the problem has now been solved as Spirit encountered in its way another northern-tilting slope, dubbed Low Ridge Haven. The hill, described as "an impassable, sandy area", is properly tilted and allows the maximization of the amount of sunlight reaching the rover's solar panels.
"We've had this imperative to drive, drive, drive for months," said Steve Squyres who is the leader of the team. "We've just been screaming around as fast as we can go. That got-to-keep-moving thing is over now. So now we can hunker down and really do science in depth."
When Spirit was moving toward the McCool Hill and was at about 70 meters from its destination, researchers had spotted the Low Ridge Haven at less than 20 meters. The rover can move at only around 12 meters a day, due to its faulty wheel, and sunlight has been getting dimmer and dimmer. But now, as it reached Low Ridge Haven, the rover's power supply increased by as much as 20%.
Before starting its journey toward the McCool Hill, Spirit detected a strange site of layered rocks, dubbed the Home Plate. The scientists wanted to study the site in more detail but they were forced to move on because winter was approaching. However, as Spirit has now reached Low Ridge Haven, it has found another "wonderful, finely-layered bedrock outcrops" that "might be made of the same stuff" as the Home Plate, says Squyres. The rover will probably remain at this site for the entire Martian winter carefully studying everything in detail.
