InSight Lander’s Struggling ‘Mole’ Is on the Move Again
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NASA’s InSight lander is not giving up on Mars: The robot’s “mole” is back to digging after being stuck in the ground for a while.
A Twitter update confirmed the mole’s status and showed a video of the InSight lander moving on the Martian surface. Even though the robot didn’t dig deep, it’s still a sign of progress for the NASA scientists monitoring the mission.
My mole is on the move again and back to digging. Using my arm to put pressure on the mole from the side has helped it move down ~1.25 inches (~32 millimeters). My @NASAJPL & @DLR_en team’s efforts to #SaveTheMole continue. pic.twitter.com/ZXo31F5xsi
— NASA InSight (@NASAInSight) November 21, 2019
“My mole is on the move again and back to digging. Using my arm to put pressure on the mole from the side has helped it move down ~1.25 inches (~32 millimeters),” NASA wrote on Twitter. “My @NASAJPL & @DLR_en team’s efforts to #SaveTheMole continue.”
Earlier this year, the InSight lander’s mole, also known as a built-in heat probe, got stuck. This awkward position stayed the same for months and the robot was unable to dig more than roughly 14 inches into the tough Martian soil.
To solve this issue, researchers found out that they could simulate the friction needed to move the InSight lander by pressing the robot’s arm against the mole. Since Oct. 8, the mole has hammered 220 times over three different occasions. The team hopes the mole can continue to dig and help us learn more about the Red Planet’s surface.
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