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Traction control testing

A "scarecrow" rover at NASA's JPL drives over a sensor while testing a new driving algorithm. Engineers created the algorithm to reduce wheel wear on the Mars Curiosity rover.

June 29, 2017

A "scarecrow" rover at NASA's JPL drives over a sensor while testing a new driving algorithm. Engineers created the algorithm to reduce wheel wear on the Mars Curiosity rover.

Related Story: mars.nasa.gov/news/2017/an-algorithm-helps-protect-mars-curiositys-wheels

Credits

NASA/JPL-Caltech

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An engineering model for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory makes its way up a hill in the Mars Yard testing area at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
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An engineering model for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory makes its way up a hill in the Mars Yard testing area at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
"Scarecrow" Descends Hill
The Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) instrument on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover monitors the natural radiation environment at the surface of Mars.
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The Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) instrument on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover monitors the natural radiation environment at the surface of Mars.
Radiation Measurements on Mars
This image from the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity shows details of rock texture and color in an area where the rover's Dust Removal Tool (DRT) brushed away dust that ...
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This image from the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity shows details of rock texture and color in an area where the rover's Dust Removal Tool (DRT) brushed away dust that was on the rock.
Close-up of Brushed Area on Martian Rock Target 'Ekwir_1'
Engineers test the Scarecrow rover on a dunes obstacle course. This test was done in the Dumont Dunes in California's Mojave Desert, near Death Valley.
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sand dune, mars rover, wheel, Dumont, Scarecrow, test - Several engineers watch as the Scarecrow test rover goes over a dunes obstacle course.
Dunes Obstacle Course
This stereo view from the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a 360-degree panorama around the location where the rover spent its 1,000th Martian day, or sol, on Mars. T...
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This stereo view from the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a 360-degree panorama around the location where the rover spent its 1,000th Martian day, or sol, on Mars.
Panorama from Curiosity's Sol 1000 Location (Stereo)
Curiosity remains busy on Mars by checking out her instruments and getting ready for her first test drive.
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Instrument Check-Out
Instrument Check-Out
This image shows the landing site of NASA's Curiosity rover and destinations scientists want to investigate.
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This image shows the landing site of NASA's Curiosity rover and destinations scientists want to investigate.
Martian Treasure Map
This panorama combining images taken on Feb. 10, 2014, by the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover looks back to where the rover crossed a dune at "Dingo Gap" four days earlier...
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This panorama combining images taken on Feb. 10, 2014, by the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover looks back to where the rover crossed a dune at "Dingo Gap" four days earlier. The view is centered toward the east and spans about 225 degrees.
Panoramic View From West of 'Dingo Gap'
This pit crater was created by an empty lava tube in Mars’ Arsia Mons region. The image was captured by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter on Aug. 16, 2020.
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This pit crater was created by an empty lava tube in Mars’ Arsia Mons region. The image was captured by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter on Aug. 16, 2020.
HiRISE Spots the Mouth of a Martian Lava Tube
This photograph of the NASA Mars Science Laboratory rover, Curiosity, was taken during mobility testing on June 3, 2011. The location is inside the Spacecraft Assembly Facility at NASA's Jet Propul...
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This photograph of the NASA Mars Science Laboratory rover, Curiosity, was taken during mobility testing on June 3, 2011. The location is inside the Spacecraft Assembly Facility at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
Mars Rover Curiosity, Right Side View
A mineral vein with bright and dark portions dominates this image of a Martian rock target called "Rona," which is near the southern, upper edge of "Vera Rubin Ridge" on Mount Sharp.
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mineral veins in rock
Brushed Vein in 'Rona' on 'Vera Rubin Ridge'
On the 84th and 85th Martian days of the NASA Mars rover Curiosity's mission on Mars (Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, 2012), NASA's Curiosity rover used the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) to capture dozens of h...
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On the 84th and 85th Martian days of the NASA Mars rover Curiosity's mission on Mars (Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, 2012), NASA's Curiosity rover used the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) to capture dozens of high-resolution images to be combined into self-portrait images of the rover.
Curiosity Self-Portrait, Wide View
This close-up view of "Tintina" was taken by the rover's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on Sol 160 (Jan. 17, 2013) and shows interesting linear textures in the bright white material on the rock.
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This close-up view of "Tintina" was taken by the rover's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on Sol 160 (Jan. 17, 2013) and shows interesting linear textures in the bright white material on the rock.
Close-up View of Broken Mars Rock 'Tintina'
This view from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a network of two-tone mineral veins at an area called "Garden City" on lower Mount Sharp.
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This March 18, 2015, view from the Mast Camera on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a network of two-tone mineral veins at an area called "Garden City" on lower Mount Sharp.
Prominent Veins at 'Garden City' on Mount Sharp, Mars
This image from NASA's Curiosity rover shows the first sample of powdered rock extracted by the rover's drill.
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This image from NASA's Curiosity rover shows the first sample of powdered rock extracted by the rover's drill.
First Curiosity Drilling Sample in the Scoop
This image is the first high-resolution color mosaic from NASA's Curiosity rover, showing the geological environment around the rover's landing site in Gale Crater on Mars.
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This image is the first high-resolution color mosaic from NASA's Curiosity rover, showing the geological environment around the rover's landing site in Gale Crater on Mars.
First High-Resolution Color Mosaic of Curiosity's Mastcam Images (Raw-colors)
The area where NASA's Curiosity rover will land on Aug. 5 PDT (Aug. 6 EDT) has a geological diversity that scientists are eager to investigate, as seen in this false-color map based on data from NA...
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The area where NASA's Curiosity rover will land on Aug. 5 PDT (Aug. 6 EDT) has a geological diversity that scientists are eager to investigate, as seen in this false-color map based on data from NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter.
Geological Diversity at Curiosity's Landing Site
NASA's Curiosity Mars rover recorded this stereo view of various rock types at waypoint called "the Kimberley" shortly after arriving at the location on April 2, 2014. The scene appears three dimen...
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NASA's Curiosity Mars rover recorded this stereo view of various rock types at waypoint called "the Kimberley" shortly after arriving at the location on April 2, 2014. The scene appears three dimensional when viewed through red-blue glasses with the red lens on the left.
Curiosity's View From Arrival Point at 'The Kimberley' Waypoint (Stereo)
At Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, an overhead crane will be used to lift the Centaur upper stage for the United Launch Alliance Atlas V into the Vertical Integrat...
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At Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, an overhead crane will be used to lift the Centaur upper stage for the United Launch Alliance Atlas V into the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF).
Centaur Upper Stage Rocket Arrives at KSC
This image, taken with the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera, shows a mesa within the "Murray Buttes" area on Mars showing a complex fracture pattern (black arrow) protrudi...
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This image shows a mesa (grayish) within the "Murray Buttes" area on Mars showing a complex fracture pattern (black arrow) protruding from the eroding rock.
'Murray Buttes' Mesa
This raw image of "Tintina," a broken rock fragment in a rover wheel track, was taken by Curiosity's Mast Camera (Mastcam).
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This raw image of "Tintina," a broken rock fragment in a rover wheel track, was taken by Curiosity's Mast Camera (Mastcam).
Rock "Tintina" Exposes "Yellowknife Bay" Vein Material
The Mast Camera, or Mastcam, on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover captured this set of images before and after it drilled a rock nicknamed "Aberlady." The rock and others nearby appear to have moved when...
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The Mast Camera, or Mastcam, on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover captured this set of images before and after it drilled a rock nicknamed "Aberlady."
Curiosity's Latest Drill Hole
In this image from NASA's Curiosity Mars rover looking up the ramp at the northeastern end of "Hidden Valley," a pale outcrop including drilling target "Bonanza King" is at the center of the scene.
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In this image from NASA's Curiosity Mars rover looking up the ramp at the northeastern end of "Hidden Valley," a pale outcrop including drilling target "Bonanza King" is at the center of the scene.
Looking Up the Ramp Holding 'Bonanza King' on Mars
No bones about it! Seen by Mars rover Curiosity using its MastCam, this Mars rock may look like a femur thigh bone. Mission science team members think its shape is likely sculpted by erosion, eithe...
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This Mars rock may look like a femur thigh bone, but its shape is likely sculpted by erosion, either wind or water.
Bone up on Mars Rock Shapes
This color thumbnail image was obtained by NASA's Curiosity rover during its descent to the surface of Mars on Aug. 5 PDT (Aug. 6 EDT).
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Martian Surface Below Curiosity
Martian Surface Below Curiosity

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