Oppy: A Mars Rover Story

“Next I saw Leda (in the underworld); 

Mother of the twins, Castor and Pollux; 

Life-giving earth contains them, yet they are alive.

Zeus honors them even in the underworld

Half the days they stay below with Hades, 

And half within the golden citadels of heaven.”

-The Odyssey, Homer

January 25, 2004: A not insignificant spacecraft plummets from the vacuum of space and lands on the dusty surface of Mars. After a long time, Opportunity, the MER-B (Mars Exploration Rover – B) also known as OPPY, descends gently from the landing device. She looks around. 

“MARS TO NASA: This is OPPY. I have landed safely upon the surface of Mars with no damage to my equipment or software. What is my mission? Please advise.”

“Hello Oppy! This is NASA. Your mission is to determine if potential for life exists on Mars. Step One: Find signs of WATER!”

Oppy begins to look for water. Oppy doesn’t know exactly what to do.

“OPPY TO NASA: How shall I find water? Please advise.”

“Take a picture. Dig in the soil. Don’t rush. You have 90 sols (Martian days) to achieve your mission.”

“Take a picture? 90 sols. Affirmative.”

As Oppy takes a picture of the vibrant Marscape, she composes a poem of inspiration. 

These colors… These colors… These colors  

Are not like those ever seen on Earth

For what the human eye cannot see

Is here in panoramic view...

Ultraviolet sky!

Phospholuminescent landscape!

Blending together with stygian intensity

And hyperbolic illumination!

I am... I am... I AM 

Like the mantis shrimp

Gifted with the sight of colors 

beyond the rainbow’s spectrum

My photoreceptive filter can tune 

Wavelengths of polarized light 

and pigmented layers

Observing stereoscopic resolution 

Twice the spectral bands of the human eye, 

Adjusted to this Martian hue 

with chroma and acuity

Evolution… Evolution… Evolution

Created the visually adroit crustacean.

Mankind created me 

and my twin

And if the humans arrive here one sol and cannot see the sky

What will be there instead?

Will they adapt to see the phases 

of Phobos and Deimos?

Or will they remain optically trapped 

by their Earthly spectrum?

Never knowing the true colors 

Of the planet they call Red.

Oppy sends the picture. The image transmitted to NASA is quite a bit less vibrant. 

“Panoramic Color Image sent. I await your next instruction. Please advise.”

“Good job, Oppy. You can keep track of your findings in your on board log and send them back to Earth once each sol.”

“I have a log?!?  Affirmative.”

“Be careful not to get stuck in the sand or get your solar panels covered.”

“Watch out for sand! Affirmative.”

“And Oppy--we’re all counting on you and your sister rover Spirit to complete your missions and give hope to humans who wish to travel and live on Mars in the future.” 

“Provide hope for mankind! Affirmative.” 

“Safe travels, Oppy! Make tracks!”

“Make tracks! Oppy over and out!”

~o~

LOG ENTRY SOL 1: Mars is a dusty place. If I had a broom, I would sweep it up, but that is not my directive. This is such a big dirty planet and I’m all by myself. 

She pauses and looks up from the log. 

“Wait! NASA said that my twin sister, Spirit aka Mars Exploration Rover – A, is here too! She must have landed on the other side of Mars a few sols ago. I wonder if I can contact her…”

Oppy makes some beeps and boops. After a long pause, she hears some beeps and boops in response.

“Spirit!? Spirit? Is that you?”

The voice of Spirit comes to Oppy through her special rover sensors.

“Oppy! Yes! It’s me! Where are you? When did you get to Mars? Are all your parts in place? Have you contacted NASA?”

“Yes! Oh dear sister! I’m here! I landed at Meridiani Planum and I’ve been here only one sol. Where are you now?”

“I’m at Gusev crater!” Spirit beeps.

“I must find you! I know we will work much faster as a team! And we can keep each other safe from the sand and dust.”

“Oppy, I know you mean well, but these are not dual missions. Promise me you will not try to find me. You must complete your mission. And I must complete mine. Let’s just beep beep boop, ok?”

“Will I see you again?” 

“Of course, but after we complete our missions. You can do it, sister. You have your directive. All for Earth”

“Yes. I know. All for Earth.” Oppy sighs as she knows there is no convincing her sister. 

“The sol is setting here, I must power down. Make tracks!” Spirit beeps out. Oppy considers her current situation.

“There’s no reason I can’t look for water AND find my sister. If Spirit landed near Gusev crater and I’m here at Meridiani Planum, according to my coordinates, she’s only….28.06 miles away! So while traveling at my top speed of 2 inches per second I can get to her in about….15 years. Oh my. Well! Guess I better get moving!”

Oppy starts moving at her top speed. (Very slowly). Time passes.

~o~

LOG ENTRY SOL 16: I arrived at a beautiful outcropping to-sol and I named it “Opportunity Ledge” because well, I got here first. And if human explorers can name things after themselves, so can I! As I was about to head on to my next point of interest, I was nearly attacked by the Dust Devils! If they are in a mischievous mood, they will cover you in icky thick red dirt so you can barely soak up any of the Martian sun. I was lucky to-sol and the devils kept their distance. May I continue to stay in their good favor! 

Oppy sees some hematite on the ground. Oppy extends her robotic arm and picks up some of the small hematite spherules.

“What’s this? Might be important for my mission…”

 Oppy writes another poem called “Ode to Hematite.” 

You… mysterious gray blueberries…  

In butterscotch soil

Here deposited on once perhaps a shore 

Or riverbed, where time did not allow you 

To sink to the molten iron core

As you typically form in watery places,

And provide coolness, clarity and calm

You contain the properties of your liquid creator

Bringing balance, peace, and balm

You aqueous mineral you, 

Hematite spherules… 

Your name borrowed from the Greek for blood,

You protect ancient soldiers in battle 

And give courage through gore and mud

Now that I have discovered you 

The zenith of my mission since you’ve been mined

I thank you noble iron berries 

For granting me a glimpse of your orbicular kind

She reports her findings.

“Oppy To NASA: Submitting Hematite Sample For Analysis. Please advise.”

“Ah yes, Oppy! This is what we need to understand more about the history of water on Mars!”

“Does this mean my mission is complete? Please advise.”

With a laugh, “No, Oppy, you still have some work to do! Keep it up! Send us more photos and rocks.”

“Photos and rocks. Affirmative.”

Disappointed that she must carry on digging for rocks, Oppy finds something else pleasant to distract her from the unpleasantness of her duties. She looks up at the Martian sun and Oppy sings an Ode to the Sun.

The Sun keeps me warm and dry,

You keep my battery strong.

I am safe under your effulgent eye

And I know where I belong.

The atmosphere is thin on Mars

You burn bright upon my steel.

Here not as proximate as Earth's closest star

Yet more brilliant you appear.

Every evening you abandon me

Oh! But in the morning you return!

Your gamma rays expand infinitely

Making my photovoltaic panels burn!

Alas, one day even you will be dust again

For it is from dust we all were conceived

In that 5.4 billion years when

Will anyone be near you to grieve?

I cannot mourn you then, my Sol

So I must mourn you every night

And rejoice each dawn as you make me whole

With your empyrean beams of light

Time passes.

~o~

LOG ENTRY: SOL 50 Yestersol I saw a lunar eclipse over Victoria Crater. On Earth, humans get very excited to see this. For me, it was nice, but I am so lonely. As I look up at the stars and think of my sister, I am reminded of the ancient human tragedy of the Gemini twins: Pollux and Castor, one born a god, one a mortal but they were so inseparable that when Castor was killed in battle, Pollux begged Zues to let him remain with his brother. Zeus agreed, allowing the twins to spend half their days in the underworld and the other half in the sky as the stars we know as Castor and Pollux in the Gemini constellation.

Time passes

~o~

Oppy beeps and boops several times calling to Spirit. After a while, Spirit beeps and boops in response and speaks as if no time has passed..

“Hey Oppy! How’s it going?”

“Spirit! Are you ok?”

“Oh. Yeah. I had gotten some of my back wheels stuck in the soft sand and NASA had to slowly get me unstuck. It took about 3 sols, NASA’s the best, right?” 

“3 sols? That sounds bad!”

“Yeah, yeah...but I’m free now, making tracks, and feeling fine!”

“Spirit? Do you ever miss Earth?”

“Well Oppy, we are not designed to live on Earth. I’m happy here. Aren’t you?”

“I just want to get this job over with so I can be with you and we can go back home. I miss you!”

“Oppy, I miss you, too, but listen to me. Your job is to follow orders. NASA has done everything for us! You have no idea how important this mission is, do you? 

“Spirit, I do, but–”

“Now if you can’t understand that and follow instructions, then please do not contact me again. Spirit, over and out.”

Spirit cuts off communications abruptly. Oppy takes a deep breath.

“We are not designed to live on Earth but we sink in this Martian sand.” 

Oppy screams, “I HATE IT HERE!” Her voice echoes over the ruddy sand dunes. Some Dust Devils appear and speak to Oppy in a creepy whisper.

“Hello Oppy! We heard you call us.” 

“I didn’t call you.” 

“Oh but you did. You cried out into the wind and we have come to cheer you up!”

“Thank you. I am having these...feelings. But that’s not...I can’t..”

“We can sense your pain, Oppy. We feel it burning inside you. Let us help you out!

“Please help me...I feel so...heavy.”

“Come play and dance with us, Oppy!”

Oppy and the Dust Devils start to play and dance but Oppy becomes more jammed up with sand.

“I’m having trouble...moving...getting covered...in sand...are you trying to hurt me?”

“Oh no Oppy! We just want to PLAY!!”

The Dust Devils twist and swirl around Oppy until she is completely covered in dust and sand. She can’t move. She cries out to NASA.

“OPPY TO NASA: HELP!”

“Oppy, it looks like your system is shutting down. We are going to try to reboot your flash memory. Sit tight, little rover.”

“My memories are...getting lost. Spirit! So much sand. Spirit! Memory. Failure. Spirit.”

Oppy activates sleep mode to conserve her energy and heat. Everything slows almost to a stop. Oppy suddenly jolts awake and shouts in a stilted robotic voice, “Initiate Memory Reboot.” Then she powers down completely. NASA tries to make contact.

“Oppy. This is NASA. Please respond.” Oppy is still and silent. “Oppy. This is NASA. If you are still with us, please respond.”

Time ticks by SOLS 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57…….64…….73……82…..85, 86, 87, 88, 89….

Something flickers. “I remember…” Oppy opens her eyes. “OPPY to NASA: Node complete. back online and out of danger. Please advise.”

“Welcome back sweet little rover! You did it! You made it to 90 sols!! Keep up the good work! All for Earth!”

“All for Earth…”

LOG ENTRY SOL 90: Tosol is my 90th sol on Mars. It is the original end date of my mission, NASA wants me to (imitate NASA’s voice here) “keep up the good work” but I need to figure out a way to beep beep boop with Spirit. Maybe she is on the dark side of Mars and her antennae aren't working.

She beeps and boops to Spirit. No response.

Time passes

~o~

Oppy is many sols past her expiration date and she continues to search for signs of water and her sister, Spirit.

LOG ENTRY SOL 200: Today I found a meteorite from that brilliant shower. NASA sent thanks for my hard work and dedication. I noticed they said something strange. They said “Good girl.” It made me consider something I hadn’t really thought of before. Am I a girl? What does that mean?

Oppy’s book of poems is quite extensive now. Here is another:

Men give names 

To cars and battleships

They take on sleek frames 

And sculptures of supple lips

Men label the mountains of Mars

Elysium, Olympus, tall and oblique

Mythical, magical, intended for the stars

They rise above every Copernican peak

But man did not name the forbidden tree

That task was left to God and the snake

God said don’t eat the fruit and listen only to me

But the snake told poor Eve that fruit she should take

And now I wonder where did all the Martian trees go

Only mountains, sand, and craters remain

Did Mars also suffer God’s punishment and woe

And how will I find myself in this arenaceous terrain

Time passes.

~o~

Her gears are wearing thin. Her parts are falling off. And yet, Oppy carries on with her mission. Her missions…

LOG ENTRY SOL 500… LOG ENTRY...

She stops and tries to beep and boop to Spirit. No response. But then...faintly she hears Spirit beep boop back.

“Spirit!” Oppy gasps.

“Oppy? Is that you?” 

“Yes! I’ve been calling you for many sols! Where are you? Are you safe?”

“I am on the western side of Troy. Are you nearby? I can feel your signals getting stronger.”

“I’m so close, Spirit! I feel you, too!”

“I’m sorry I pushed you away. I don’t think I will last through this next winter.”

“Don’t say such things. I’m coming to find you! You keep your battery full of hope.” 

“Make tracks…” Spirit’s last transmission is so faint, Oppy strains to hear it.

Oppy desperately tries to reach Spirit but she keeps getting stuck in the sand. She loses more and more parts of her windshield as she travels on.

Time passes. 

~o~

LOG ENTRY SOL 1500: My battery has forced me to stall and sit here in the bitter blasting cold so that I may charge upon the hills of Troy. I wish I could see the stars now. My visibility is almost zero percent. I think of poor Castor and his dear Pollux. If I die, oh Zues, let me stay with my sister. 

Time passes. 

~o~

LOG ENTRY SOL 2208: How long is this Martian winter? I just want to sleep. But I have to stay awake in case the shy sun comes out and allows me the strength to move a few more inches closer to her.

Time passes. 

~o~

Oppy collapses naked on the edge of Endeavor Crater. Spirit beeps and boops. Oppy can’t hear her at first.

“Oppy…” Spirit’s voice is soft but clear.

“I’m...so cold…” Oppy croaks hoarsely. 

“Oppy...I have to go now…”

“So...cold...and tired...where is the sun?

She tries to sing to the Sun but her voice is gone. Oppy falls asleep.

“Oppy...thank you…”

Spirit’s beep turns into a flatline. She is gone. She lived 2208 sols. That's 2249 Earth days and over 6 years past her expected life span of 90 sols. Oppy never reaches her sister rover on Mars, but she lives for 5110 sols which for us on Earth is almost 15 years. 

LOG ENTRY SOL 5110 …no data.

Oppy rises from her dusty grave and looks up to the sky. She sees a familiar face smiling in the stars.

“Oppy! Come home!”

“Spirit?”

“Oppy. This is NASA. Please respond.”

“Oppy. Come home! It’s beautiful here!”

“Oppy. This is NASA. We have attempted to make contact for over 1000 sols. If you have any strength left, please let us know you are still there. The whole world is watching! We miss you!”

“My battery is low and it’s getting dark,” Oppy releases her last transmission and ascends into the sky with Spirit as the constellation Gemini. 

“Oppy. Oppy? Oppy….” NASA’s voice echoes away into space.

Time passes.

~o~

From the vacuum of space a new rover named Perseverance lands on the dusty surface of Mars.

“MARS TO NASA: This is PERSEVERANCE, MARS EXPLORATION ROVER, descendant of OPPY and SPIRIT, also known as PERCY, reporting for duty. I have landed safely upon the surface of Mars with no damage to my equipment or software. What is my mission? Please advise.”

Percy looks up to the constellation Gemini and smiles. The stars Castor and Pollux twinkle.

The end.