PIA09261: Spirit Feels Dust Gust
 Target Name:  Mars
 Is a satellite of:  Sol (our sun)
 Mission:  Mars Exploration Rover (MER)
 Spacecraft:  Spirit
 Instrument:  Navigation Camera
 Product Size:  1022 x 252 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  JPL
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA09261.tif (258 kB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA09261.jpg (53.53 kB)

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Original Caption Released with Image:

On sol 1149 (March 28, 2007) of its mission, NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit caught a wind gust with its navigation camera. A series of navigation camera images were strung together to create this movie. The front of the gust is observable because it was strong enough to lift up dust. From assessing the trajectory of this gust, the atmospheric science team concludes that it is possible that it passed over the rover. There was, however, no noticeable increase in power associated with this gust. In the past, dust devils and gusts have wiped the solar panels of dust, making it easier for the solar panels to absorb sunlight.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL-Caltech

Image Addition Date:
2007-04-16