The Mars Rover Opportunity has now been operational on the red planet for almost ten years and is still going strong. The rover Spirit was launched on June 10  in 2003 and Opportunity soon followed on July 7. They finally reached Mars in 2004 and while Spirit shut down operations after the forth Martian Winter it faced in 2010, Opportunity is currently moving to a new area to study.

The new region is called Solander Point and will be like walking up to a road cut where you see a cross section of the rock layers. Scientists associated with the project are excited about the learning opportunity that this will provide. The main thing right now is to get Opportunity there.

After landing inside the Gale Crater on Mars last year Curiosity has been constantly on the move and in the news. The rover has been working for six months in an area the size of a small football field but is now moving away to the base of Mount Sharp. Three additional targets have been chosen for observation on the way there.

While no more rock drilling or soil scooping is planned for the mobile science laboratory, the rover will continue to explore the area around it as it moves to its next destination 8 kilometers away. This is one science project that has more than met its goals.