Oppy has now moved away from Chester Lake and is heading back towards Odyssey Crater, no doubt in advance of a turn to the north to line her up on approach to Shoemaker Ridge. Bit puzzled why she didn’t just drive right to the ridge from Chester Lake; the terrain looked pretty unchallenging – a bit uppy-and-downy but nothing dramatic – but what do I know? Maybe Oppy dropped her keys as she drove around Endeavour and she’s going back to look for them?
Anyway, she’ll be turning north for SR soon enough, and when she reaches it the view will be pretty impressive I think: to the east she’ll see right down into and across the crater, and looking north she’ll see more of the ridges, crests and craters of Cape York. Can’t wait!
In the meantime, here’s a last look at the RAT hole Oppy drilled before her departure.
So… where are we going next?
Here’s a 3D view of the southern end of Cape York. Glasses on, folks…
Shoemaker Ridge is the lighter patch of ground to the north-east of Odyssey Crater, at about the 1 o’clock position. Here’s a close-up…
As you can see, there are none of the large blocks of ejecta at SR that we can see around Odyssey, no Ridouts or Tisdales, but there’ll be plenty to see. The attractions will be the layers and outcrops ofrock making up the Ridge itself. Oppy could be examining those within a few days, depending on what she’s heading back to Odyssey for, and how long it takes her to find those keys… š
More images due back later today, so check back then. In the meantime, let’s look at where Oppy might go over the next few weeks and months…
The Road To Endeavour 