Devon
Island, Nunavut, Canada
Agenda
- Scout western Von Braun Planitia and record positions to register
the DEM
Status and Progress
- Weather today precluded all operations with Hyperion. Late
in the day
we moved Hyperion to drier ground, oriented it into the wind,
and staked
it to the ground. All other equipment stowed for high winds.
- Hiked into western Von Braun Planitia (VBP) to find an appropriate
test area for sun-synchronous traverse. Paul, Jim, and David
guided by
Oz and Samson and joined by Darnel and AC bundled up and hiked
along the
ridgeline west of VBP. Several narrow canyons would be traversable
by
Hyperion up to the plateau from which they source. They are
currently
flowing with meltwater. At the north of the ridgeline is Marine
Peak.
Between the unnamed ridgeline and the peak lies a broad flat
drainage,
perhaps 400m wide. We traversed this drainage and walked up
Marine Peak
which stands perhaps 50m above VBP. To the north of peak is
another
drainage, approximately 600m wide. It flows west where the northern
and
southern drainages meet. It appears that a complete circuit
around the
peak may be traversable by Hyperion. The snow continues to melt
in the
rain but at this time all the drainages in VBP are flowing heavily.
The
weather forecast is for rain continuing through Sunday after
which a
number of clear days will be required for the ground to drain.
Our
operating plan will be to begin testing in the eastern portion
of VBP
after one clear day and move west to the area around Marine
Peak for
progressively longer experiments. System tests will continue
while on
VBP.
Upcoming
- Continue testing of the perception and navigation system
- Install panoramic camera
- Install solar panels and measure performance
- Move Hyperion to Von Braun Planitia to continue testing and
increase distance/duration
Weather
Early: Overcast, 300m deck. Rain. 4C. Winds 15-25kph with gusts
to 40kph.
Late: Overcast, 300m deck. Intermittent rain. 5C. Winds 10-20kph.
Quote of the Day
"If it's lickable, it will be licked." (referring
to the camp dogs)
