I’ve accepted that I can’t control much about Mars. When you start a new day as a rover driver the terrain is what it is, sometimes rocky, sometimes sandy, rarely amenable to remote robotic activities. Science describes what they want and sometimes we can do it, sometimes we can’t. There are power constraints, data constraints, imagery that needs to be taken, etc.

But the one thing I can do is be prepared. I can logon to my computer early and start studying whatever images made it down. I can review the previous plan to better understand where the rover is and make sure I have an idea of what our strategic priorities are. If a fault occurred I can understand why. In short, I can build up my situational awareness and readiness before the shift even starts. I find that this makes the whole day go smoother, particularly the critical first hour or two when we are scoping on a drive and selecting science targets. This is critical, as it means more and better science can be fit into our valuable time on Mars.

My current goal is to prepare better than anyone else.