Opportunity launched July 7, 2003 and lasted 15 years.
REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA — Opportunity, also known as Oppy, is a Mars rover belonging to the American Space Agency (NASA) which was launched on July 7, 2003, or 19 years ago. The probe has a mission of crossing 1,000 meters and lasting 90 days on Mars.
As it turned out, the rover lasted 15 years and covered more than 28 miles (45 km) before being crushed by a dust storm.
Reported from Earth Sky, on July 7, 2003, Opportunity began its journey to Mars. On January 25, 2004, Opportunity, after spending about seven months in space, landed on Meridiani Planum on Mars. This landing occurred three weeks after the landing of Spirit, its twin rover, on opposite sides of the planet.
In 2009, Spirit stopped crossing the surface of Mars. In 2010, Spirit stopped sending signals back to Earth.
However, the targeted Opportunity could surpass as long as 90 Martian days and 1,000 meters, far outperforming all predictions in terms of durability, scientific value, and even lifespan. After about 15 years of studying the Martian surface, the rover’s mission was officially completed in 2019.
By the time the rover arrived at its most fitting final resting place in the Perseverance Valley of Mars, it had covered more than 45 km, exceeding its life expectancy.
When a massive dust storm that covers all of Mars devours the rover’s location Opportunity in June 2018, the rover stopped communicating with Earth. The storm is likely to impact the rover’s solar panels. On June 10 2018, Opportunity’s last communication was finally received.
Long farewell
Engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) undertook a comprehensive eight-month recovery strategy to try to allow the rover to communicate throughout late summer and fall 2018.
More than a thousand commands were sent to the rover, but nothing happened. Space enthusiasts started using the hashtags #ThankYouOppy and #GoodnightOppy on Twitter and other social media sites which turned into an outburst for months.
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