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This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows a portion of Ophir Chasma, a part of Valles Marineris, the largest canyon system on Mars. At the top of the image is a portion of a large landslide deposit which originate at the northern wall of the canyon. | Context imageToday's VIS image shows part of Ophir Chasma. Ophir Chasma is part of Valles Marineris, the largest canyon system on Mars. At the top of the image is a portion of a large landslide deposit which originate at the northern wall of the canyon. The bright toned part at the bottom of the image is the northern extent of Beatis Mensa, a large layered deposit within the canyon.Orbit Number: 72429 Latitude: -3.9913 Longitude: 288.136 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2018-04-12 23:52Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft looks like a thumbs up or a mitten pattern in the dark dunes on the floor of a crater. | Context imageDo you see what I see? Looks like a thumb's up or a mitten pattern in the dark dunes on the floor of this crater.Orbit Number: 17618 Latitude: -68.0936 Longitude: 175.554 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2005-12-03 23:10Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
Spirit's View on Sol 142 (Right Eye) | This is the right-eye view of a stereo pair showing a 360-degree view of the terrain surrounding NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit on the 142nd martian day of the rover's mission inside Gusev Crater, on May 27, 2004. It was assembled from images taken by Spirit's navigation camera. The rover's position is Site A55. The view is presented in a cylindrical-perspective projection with geometrical seam correction.See PIA06026 for 3-D view and PIA06027 for left eye view of this right eye cylindrical-perspective projection. | |
This 2001 Mars Odyssey image shows windstreaks located on the Syrtis Major Volcanic complex on Mars. | Context imageCredit: NASA/JPL/MOLAThe windstreaks in this VIS image are located on the Syrtis Major Volcanic complex. The direction of the tails (behind the impact crater) indicate the winds are blowing from ENE to WSW.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 8.5N, Longitude 69.9E. 42 meter/pixel resolution.Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit taken on Nov 2, 2005 shows an impact feature called 'East Basin.' Dark features on the far side of the basin are basaltic sand deposits emplaced on the lee sides of hills by northwesterly winds. | Click on the image for 'East Basin' Panorama (QTVR)NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit used its panoramic camera to obtain this view of the impact feature called "East Basin" to the northeast of "Husband Hill." The images combined into this mosaic were taken during Spirit's 653rd Martian day, or sol (Nov. 3, 2005), just before Spirit descended eastward onto "Haskin Ridge." The view is about 150 degrees wide. It is an approximately true-color rendering generated using the camera's 750-nanometer, 530-nanometer, and 480-nanometer filters. Dark features on the far side of the basin, just left of center in this view, are basaltic sand deposits that were emplaced on the lee sides of hills by northwesterly winds. Haskin Ridge is visible along the right margin of the image, capped by a light-toned layer of rock. Spirit investigated the light-toned rock unit after taking this image. The basaltic plains located east of the "Columbia Hills" can be seen in the distance beyond "East Basin." The rim of Thira crater is just visible on the distant horizon some 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) away. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft shows a channel system flowing to the southwest toward the huge Hellas impact basin. | Map Projected Browse ImageClick on the image for larger versionThis scarp at the edge of the North Polar layered deposits of Mars is the site of the most frequent frost avalanches seen by HiRISE. At this season, northern spring, frost avalanches are common and HiRISE monitors the scarp to learn more about the timing and frequency of the avalanches, and their relationship to the evolution of frost on the flat ground above and below the scarp.This picture managed to capture a small avalanche in progress, right in the color strip. See if you can spot it in the browse image, and then click on the cutout to see it at full resolution. The small white cloud in front of the brick red cliff is likely carbon dioxide frost dislodged from the layers above, caught in the act of cascading down the cliff. It is larger than it looks, more than 20 meters across, and (based on previous examples) it will likely kick up clouds of dust when it hits the ground.The avalanches tend to take place at a season when the North Polar region is warming, suggesting that the avalanches may be triggered by thermal expansion. The avalanches remind us, along with active sand dunes, dust devils, slope streaks and recurring slope lineae, that Mars is an active and dynamic planet. The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates HiRISE, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. | |
Two pairs of side-by-side, before and after images from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter illustrate changes in the shape of edges of dark sand dunes in the Nili Patera region of Mars. | Two pairs of side-by-side, before and after images from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter illustrate changes in the shape of edges of dark sand dunes in the Nili Patera region of Mars. The two images on the left are excerpts from a June 30, 2007, observation (late autumn at the site). The two on the right are of the same ground observed 15 weeks later, on Oct. 13, 2007 (winter at the site). Dark dunes overlaid with smaller ripples fill the bottom of the upper pair and cross the middle of the lower pair. In each image, an inset box in the upper left holds a diagram of the ripple crests (yellow lines) and dune edges (green lines) within the inscribed box to the right of the diagram. Changes both in the dune edges and in the ripple crests occurred during the interval between the June observation and the October observation.White scale bars in each image are 10 meters (33 feet) long. North is toward the top.A locator map at PIA12857 shows the context for the areas shown in these images. The inset box there labeled 4a-a' indicates the location of the top pair here. The box 4b-b' indicates the location of the bottom pair here. The site is field of dark sand dunes at 9 degrees north latitude, 67 degrees east longitude.This comparison is part of a study of whether wind-shaped bedforms on Mars -- dunes and ripples -- are actively migrating in present-day atmospheric conditions. It is from a presentation by S. Silvestro, L.K. Fenton and D.A. Vaz at the 41st Lunar and Planetary Sciences Conference, March 2010, reporting that the bedforms at this Nili Patera site are actively migrating. The changes suggest that these dunes are not heavily cemented or crusted.Other products from the June 30, 2007, HiRISE observation of this dune field are available at http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/PSP_004339_1890. Other products from Oct. 13, 2007, observation are available at http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/PSP_005684_1890. The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates the HiRISE camera, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for the NASA Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, is the spacecraft development and integration contractor for the project and built the spacecraft. | |
The channels in this image captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft are part of Hebrus Valles. | Context imageThe channels in this VIS image are part of Hebrus Valles. Hebrus Valles is located in the southern part of Utopia Planitia.Orbit Number: 62519 Latitude: 18.132 Longitude: 127.656 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2016-01-17 14:16Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
NASA's Curiosity Mars rover used the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on its mast to catch this look-back eastward at wheel tracks from driving through and past 'Dingo Gap' inside Gale Crater. | NASA's Curiosity Mars rover used the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on its mast to catch this look-back eastward at wheel tracks from driving through and past "Dingo Gap" inside Gale Crater. The gap, spanned by a 3-foot-tall (1-meter-tall) dune, is at the right-hand side of the horizon in this scene. Curiosity crossed the dune on the 535th Martian day, or sol, of the rover's work on Mars (Feb. 6). On Sol 538 (Feb. 9), it drove 135 feet (41.1 meters) farther westward. This image was taken on Sol 539 (Feb. 10) from the location reached by the previous sol's drive. For scale, the distance between the parallel wheel tracks is about 9 feet (2.7 meters).The high-mounted cylinder on the rear part of the vehicle is the rover's UHF (ultrahigh frequency) antenna. The set of disks mounted below it is part of the calibration target for Curiosity's Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument. The ball-on-a-stick device in the foreground is the calibration target, including a sundial, for Curiosity's Mast Camera (Mastcam). To the right of the UHF antenna in this image are the radiator fins for Curiosity's power supply, a radioisotope thermoelectric generator. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., manages the Mars Science Laboratory Project and the mission's Curiosity rover for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The rover was designed and assembled at JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.More information about Curiosity is online at http://www.nasa.gov/msl and http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/. | |
This image released on Sept 7, 2004 from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey shows Valles Marineris, the largest canyon in the solar system. If this canyon were on Earth, it would stretch from New York to Los Angeles. Seen here is a landslide in Ius Chasma. | The Odyssey spacecraft has taken some great pictures of Valles Marineris, the largest canyon in the solar system. If this canyon were on Earth, it would stretch from New York to Los Angeles. For the next several weeks, the Image of the Day will tour some of the canyons that make up this vast system. We will start with Ius Chasma in the west, and end with Coprates Chasma to the east. For more information on Vallis Marineris, please see http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mep/science/vm.html.This image of Ius Chasma was collected during the southern spring season. Debris from a landslide seems to cover most of the scene.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude -7.8, Longitude 280.8 East (79.2 West). 19 meter/pixel resolution.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows the western part of the dune field on the floor of Russell Crater. | Context image This image shows the western part of the dune field on the floor of Russell Crater. Russell Crater is located in Noachis Terra. A spectacular dune ridge and other dune forms on the crater floor have caused extensive imaging.The Odyssey spacecraft has spent over 15 years in orbit around Mars, circling the planet more than 69000 times. It holds the record for longest working spacecraft at Mars. THEMIS, the IR/VIS camera system, has collected data for the entire mission and provides images covering all seasons and lighting conditions. Over the years many features of interest have received repeated imaging, building up a suite of images covering the entire feature. From the deepest chasma to the tallest volcano, individual dunes inside craters and dune fields that encircle the north pole, channels carved by water and lava, and a variety of other feature, THEMIS has imaged them all. For the next several months the image of the day will focus on the Tharsis volcanoes, the various chasmata of Valles Marineris, and the major dunes fields. We hope you enjoy these images!Orbit Number: 33970 Latitude: -54.3831 Longitude: 12.3712 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2009-08-11 09:20Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
Arsia Chasmata is a complex collapsed region at the northeastern flank of Arsia Mons. The collapsed region aligns with the Pavonis and Ascraeus Mons volcanoes on Mars as seen by NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft. | Context imageArsia Chasmata is the name given to the complex collapsed region at the northeastern flank of Arsia Mons. The collapsed region aligns with the Pavonis and Ascraeus Mons volcanoes, indicating that all three volcanoes are located on a major fracture in the Tharsis region.Orbit Number: 39341 Latitude: -7.58541 Longitude: 241.005 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2010-10-27 14:37Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This observation from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows both dome and barchan dunes in a small sand dune field on the floor of Newton Crater, an approximately 300 kilometer (130 mile) wide crater in the Southern hemisphere of Mars. | Map Projected Browse ImageClick on the image for larger versionThis observation shows a small sand dune field on the floor of Newton Crater, an approximately 300 kilometer (130 mile) wide crater in the Southern hemisphere of Mars.The image shows both dome and barchan dunes. Both these types of dunes are also found on Earth. Barchan dunes in particular are common on Earth, and are generally crescent-shaped with a steep slip face bordered by horns oriented in the downwind direction. Barchan dunes form by unidirectional winds and are good indicators of the dominant wind direction.In this case, the horns of the barchan dunes are not very distinct but appear to indicate that the strongest winds blew approximately southeast to northwest. Note the pattern the dunes form around a bright streak in the downwind direction behind a crater in the center of the image.HiRISE is one of six instruments on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates HiRISE, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colorado. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. | |
This image of NASA's InSight spacecraft, taken at Lockheed Martin Space in Littleton, Colorado, shows several of the critical landing systems including the thrusters, lander legs and science deck. | Once NASA's InSight Mars lander enters the Martian atmosphere and approaches the planet's surface, propulsive landing gear will slow the spacecraft down to about 5.5 mph (8.8 km/h) and safely set it down on the surface of the Red Planet. This image, taken at Lockheed Martin Space in Littleton, Colorado, shows several of the critical landing systems including the thrusters, lander legs and science deck.JPL, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, California, manages InSight for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. InSight is part of NASA's Discovery Program, managed by the agency's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. The InSight spacecraft was built and tested by Lockheed Martin Space in Denver, Colorado.For more information about the mission, go to https://mars.nasa.gov/insight. | |
The small crater observed at the middle-right edge of this NASA Mars Odyssey image is very different from other similar looking impact craters located southeast of the Pavonis Mons volcano. | The small crater observed at the middle-right edge of this THEMIS image is very different from other similar looking impact craters located southeast of the Pavonis Mons volcano. This crater appears to be a volcanic crater at the summit of a small composite cone that shows evidence of repeated volcanic flows.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This 3-D anaglyph, from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit, shows an extreme close-up of round, blueberry-shaped grains on the crater floor near the rock outcrop at Meridiani Planum called Stone Mountain. 3D glasses are necessary. | This 3-D image from the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity rover shows an extreme close-up of round, blueberry-shaped grains on the crater floor near the rock outcrop at Meridiani Planum called Stone Mountain. Scientists are studying these curious formations for clues about the soil's history. The observed area is 3 centimeters (1.2 inches) across. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows light-toned, layered rock outcrops in a pitted and eroded region just northeast of Hellas Planitia on Mars. The light-toned materials are most likely sedimentary rocks deposited early in martian history. | 7 October 2004This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows light-toned, layered rock outcrops in a pitted and eroded region just northeast of Hellas Planitia. The light-toned materials are most likely sedimentary rocks deposited early in martian history (but long after the Hellas Basin formed by a giant asteroid or comet impact). The scene also includes a plethora of large dark-toned, windblown ripples. The image is located near 27.2°S, 280.7°W, and covers an area about 3 km (1.9 mi) wide. Sunlight illuminates the scene from the upper left. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows Roddy Crater on Mars, home to several large alluvial fans, which formed as water moved sediment from the mountainous crater rim and deposited it onto the flatter crater floor. | Map Projected Browse ImageClick on image for larger versionThis image, acquired by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter on Sept. 16, 2013, shows Roddy Crater on Mars, home to several large alluvial fans, which formed as water moved sediment from the mountainous crater rim and deposited it onto the flatter crater floor. Alluvial fans are found on Earth, Mars, and even Saturn's moon, Titan.The fans built up over time during intense rain storms or from melting snow. Due to the strong winds on Mars, the river channels that once carried water and sediment on the fan surfaces are now standing as raised ridges and platforms. A thin blanket of ejecta (upper right) from a small crater on Roddy's eastern rim protected underlying fan surfaces from modification by the wind compared to nearby, unprotected fans (left). The scarp beneath the thin ejecta surface exposes beautiful light-toned layers from the alluvial fans below.The map is projected here at a scale of 25 centimeters (9.8 inches) per pixel. [The original image scale is 27.8 centimeters (10.9 inches) per pixel (with 1 x 1 binning); objects on the order of 83 centimeters (32.7 inches) across are resolved.] North is up.The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates HiRISE, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colorado. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, California, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. | |
This 360-degree view, called the 'McMurdo' panorama, comes from the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit. From April through October 2006, Spirit has stayed on a small hill known as 'Low Ridge.' | Click on the image forSpirit's Winter Panorama Labeled Version
Since April of 2006, NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit has been
sojourning in a place called "Winter Haven," where the robotic geologist
spent several months parked on a north-facing slope in order to keep its
solar panels pointed toward the sun. During that time, while the rover spent
the daylight hours conducting as much scientific research as possible, science
team members assigned informal names to rock outcrops, boulders, and
patches of soil commemorating exploration sites in Antarctica and the
southernmost islands of South America. Antarctic bases are places where
researchers, like the rovers on Mars, hunker down for the winter in subzero
temperatures. During the past Martian winter, Spirit endured temperatures
lower than minus 100 degrees Celsius (minus 148 degrees Fahrenheit).
This full-color mosaic of images acquired by the rover's panoramic camera
shows the various features of the landscape near Spirit's "Winter Haven"
and the informal names used to identify them. With Martian spring just around
the corner and solar power levels on the rise, Spirit has been driving again.
Scientists hope to return to the circular, plateau-like feature known as "Home
Plate," though it will take some weeks to get there with a dragging right front
wheel after visiting other points of scientific interest along the way.
The full-resolution TIFF file labeled version can be viewed or downloaded
here PIA01907_fig1.tif; the full-resolution JPEG can be viewed or downloaded
here PIA01907_fig1.jpg. [Photojournal note: due to the large sizes of the
high-resolution TIFF and JPEG files, some systems may experience extremely
slow downlink time while viewing or downloading these images; some systems
may be incapable of handling the download entirely.]
This 360-degree view, called the "McMurdo" panorama, comes from the
panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit. From
April through October 2006, Spirit has stayed on a small hill known as
"Low Ridge." There, the rover's solar panels are tilted toward the sun
to maintain enough solar power for Spirit to keep making scientific
observations throughout the winter on southern Mars. This view of the
surroundings from Spirit's "Winter Haven" is presented in approximately
true color.
Oct. 26, 2006, marks Spirit's 1,000th sol of what was planned as a 90-sol
mission. (A sol is a Martian day, which lasts 24 hours, 39 minutes, 35
seconds). The rover has lived through the most challenging part of its
second Martian winter. Its solar power levels are rising again. Spring in
the southern hemisphere of Mars will begin in early 2007. Before that, the
rover team hopes to start driving Spirit again toward scientifically
interesting places in the "Inner Basin" and "Columbia Hills" inside Gusev
crater. The McMurdo panorama is providing team members with key pieces of
scientific and topographic information for choosing where to continue
Spirit's exploration adventure.
The Pancam began shooting component images of this panorama during
Spirit's sol 814 (April 18, 2006) and completed the part shown here on sol
932 (Aug. 17, 2006). The panorama was acquired using all 13 of the
Pancam's color filters, using lossless compression for the red and blue
stereo filters, and only modest levels of compression on the remaining
filters. The overall panorama consists of 1,449 Pancam images and
represents a raw data volume of nearly 500 megabytes. It is thus the
largest, highest-fidelity view of Mars acquired from either rover.
Additional photo coverage of the parts of the rover deck not shown here
was completed on sol 980 (Oct. 5 , 2006). The team is completing the
processing and mosaicking of those final pieces of the panorama, and that
image will be released on the Web shortly to augment this McMurdo panorama
view.
This beautiful scene reveals a tremendous amount of detail in Spirit's
surroundings. Many dark, porous-textured volcanic rocks can be seen around
the rover, including many on Low Ridge. Two rocks to the right of center,
brighter and smoother-looking in this image and more reflective in
infrared observations by Spirit's miniature thermal emission spectrometer,
are thought to be meteorites. On the right, "Husband Hill" on the horizon,
the rippled "El Dorado" sand dune field near the base of that hill, and
lighter-toned "Home Plate" below the dunes provide context for Spirit's
travels since mid-2005. Left of center, tracks and a trench dug by
Spirit's right-front wheel, which no longer rotates, have exposed bright
underlying material. This bright material is evidence of sulfur-rich salty
minerals in the subsurface, which may provide clues about the watery past
of this part of Gusev Crater.
Spirit has stayed busy at Winter Haven during the past six months even
without driving. In addition to acquiring this spectacular panorama, the
rover team has also acquired significant new assessments of the elemental
chemistry and mineralogy of rocks and soil targets within reach of the
rover's arm. The team plans soon to have Spirit drive to a very nearby
spot on Low Ridge to access different rock and soil samples while
maintaining a good solar panel tilt toward the sun for the rest of the
Martian winter.
Despite the long span of time needed for acquiring this 360-degree view
-- a few images at a time every few sols over a total of 119 sols because
the available power was so low -- the lighting and color remain remarkably
uniform across the mosaic. This fact attests to the repeatability of
wintertime sols on Mars in the southern hemisphere. This is the time of
year when Mars is farthest from the sun, so there is much less dust storm
and dust devil activity than at other times of the year.
This is an approximately true-color, red-green-blue composite panorama
generated from images taken through the Pancam's 600-nanometer,
530-nanometer and 480-nanometer filters. This "natural color" view is the
rover team's best estimate of what the scene would look like if we were
there and able to see it with our own eyes. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey is located near the equator and the prime meridian of Mars in a region called Terra Meridiani. This is a unique area of Mars that displays layers of material that appear to be in the process of being stripped away. | This image is located near the equator and the prime meridian of Mars in a region called Terra Meridiani. This is a unique area of Mars that displays layers of material that appear to be in the process of being stripped away. This exposing another layer of material directly underneath that is visible in the central portion of the image. Measurements from another instrument in orbit around Mars, the Thermal Emission Spectrometer on the Mars Global Surveyor, indicate that this region has a high concentration of a mineral called hematite. Grey hematite can form in both volcanic and water rich environments. It is not certain exactly how this mineral formed on Mars, but its presence along with the layering seen in this region makes this region of Mars particularly interesting. Among other possibilities, these layers could be volcanic ash deposits or plausibly sediments deposited in water. This region of Mars is very old and whatever process took place here, it happened long ago. This is one of the principal candidate sites for the next rover mission that will be sent to Mars in 2003.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
With the changing of seasons comes changes in weather. This image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows clouds in the north polar region. The surface is just barely visible in part of the image. | Context imageWith the changing of seasons comes changes in weather. This VIS image shows clouds in the north polar region. The surface is just barely visible in part of the image.Orbit Number: 44858 Latitude: 74.3324 Longitude: 211.11 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2012-01-24 20:49Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image taken by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows a portion of Scamander Vallis. Dark slope streaks are also visible on the west-facing wall of the channel. | Context imageCredit: NASA/JPL/MOLAThis VIS image shows a portion of Scamander Vallis. Dark slope streaks are also visible on the west-facing wall of the channel.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 14.7N, Longitude 29.0E. 21 meter/pixel resolution.Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows part of Dorsa Argentea in the south polar region of Mars. | Context image This VIS image shows part of Dorsa Argentea in the south polar region of Mars. The ridges are most likely material deposited in subglacial channels, which become a positive relief feature when the ice is removed. On Earth, these features are called eskers.Orbit Number: 67545 Latitude: -77.3075 Longitude: 325.515 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2017-03-06 14:06Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
Spirit Beholds Bumpy Boulder (False Color) | As NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit began collecting images for a 360-degree panorama of new terrain, the rover captured this view of a dark boulder with an interesting surface texture. The boulder sits about 40 centimeters (16 inches) tall on Martian sand about 5 meters (16 feet) away from Spirit. It is one of many dark, volcanic rock fragments -- many pocked with rounded holes called vesicles -- littering the slope of "Low Ridge." The rock surface facing the rover is similar in appearance to the surface texture on the outside of lava flows on Earth.Spirit took this false-color image with the panoramic camera on the rover's 810th sol, or Martian day, of exploring Mars (April 13, 2006). This image is a false-color rendering using camera's 753-nanometer, 535-nanometer, and 432-nanometer filters. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey is located west of Zephyria Planum. Surfaces in this region have undergone extensive erosion by the wind. Wind is one of the most active processes of erosion on the surface of Mars today. | Context imageToday's VIS image is located west of Zephyria Planum. Surfaces in this region have undergone extensive erosion by the wind. Wind is one of the most active processes of erosion on the surface of Mars today.Orbit Number: 40280 Latitude: -3.2482 Longitude: 152.311 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2011-01-12 22:12Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
These side-by-side images were taken by the Pan Camera (Pancam) on NASA's Opportunity rover. They're actually the same image; the left version is how the image originally came down. The right shows the same image after processing all the data. | These side-by-side images were taken by the Pan Camera (Pancam) on NASA's Opportunity rover. They're actually the same image; the left version is how the image originally came down, due to data dropouts. The right shows the same image after processing all the data.The image is from the 4,493rd Martian day, or sol, of the mission.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, California, manages the Mars Exploration Rover Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. For more information about Opportunity, visit https://www.nasa.gov/rovers and https://mars.nasa.gov/mer. | |
This image is from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey. THEMIS ART IMAGE #72 A bearded wizard appears to be casting a martian spell. | Context image for PIA08556THEMIS ART #72Back by popular demand: THEMIS ART IMAGE #72 Is this bearded wizard casting a martian spell?Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude -80.1N, Longitude 32.6E. 17 meter/pixel resolution.Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images. Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows the main dune field on the floor of Russell Crater on Mars. The dunes are bright in this daytime image because they are warm. The sand material is dark. | Context image for PIA09316Russell Crater - IRThis infrared image shows the main dune field on the floor of Russell Crater. The dunes are bright in this daytime image because they are warm. The sand material is dark.Image information: IR instrument. Latitude -54.6N, Longitude 13.0E. 96 meter/pixel resolution.Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows part of the southeastern flank of Ascraeus Mons. | Context image This image shows part of the southeastern flank of Ascraeus Mons. The narrow flows of the volcano dominate the top of the image, while younger volcanic plains cover the bottom of the image. The relative age designation is based on the fact that the brighter plains flows lap up against and cover the flank flows of Ascraeus Mons.The Odyssey spacecraft has spent over 15 years in orbit around Mars, circling the planet more than 69000 times. It holds the record for longest working spacecraft at Mars. THEMIS, the IR/VIS camera system, has collected data for the entire mission and provides images covering all seasons and lighting conditions. Over the years many features of interest have received repeated imaging, building up a suite of images covering the entire feature. From the deepest chasma to the tallest volcano, individual dunes inside craters and dune fields that encircle the north pole, channels carved by water and lava, and a variety of other feature, THEMIS has imaged them all. For the next several months the image of the day will focus on the Tharsis volcanoes, the various chasmata of Valles Marineris, and the major dunes fields. We hope you enjoy these images!Orbit Number: 10339 Latitude: 9.01699 Longitude: 257.294 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2004-04-13 17:23Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity recorded this view of the summit of 'Cape Tribulation,' on the western rim of Endeavour Crater on the day before the rover drove to the top. | NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity recorded this view just after reaching the summit of "Cape Tribulation," on the western rim of Endeavour Crater, on Jan. 6, 2015, the 3,894th Martian day, or sol, of the rover's work on Mars.The site is about 440 feet (about 135 meters) higher in elevation than the plain surrounding the crater, higher than any other point Opportunity has reached since it began exploring the Endeavour rim in 2011. This view spans from northeast, at left, to south-southeast, at right.A view of the summit from about 40 feet (about 12 meters) away, taken by Opportunity the previous day, is at https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19099. JPL manages the Mars Exploration Rover Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. For more information about Spirit and Opportunity, visit http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov. | |
The slopes and floor of Eos Chasma, a portion of the vast Valles Marineris canyon complex, are located near an early landing site for the MER rovers. This image was captured by NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft in October 2003. | Released 16 October 2003The slopes and floor of Eos Chasma, a portion of the vast Valles Marineris canyon complex, are located near an early landing site for the MER rovers. Sadly, this site was eliminated due to serious concerns about winds. Nevertheless, this site contains some marvelous geology. Layered rocks abound in the walls of the canyon as well as in the large streamlined material on the floor. The streamlined island appears to have been formed in a massive flood episode. Alluvial fans can also be seen at the base of the slopes. One fan has a deeply entrenched channel that was most likely carved out by water; however, it may be possible that dry avalanches created this channel.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude -13.5, Longitude 317.8 East (42.2 West). 19 meter/pixel resolution.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image released on Nov 26, 2004 from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey shows a group of channels on Mars that originate from the Elysium volcanic field. Called Granicus Vallis, these channels are related to the volcanic activity of Elysium Mons. | This day time IR image shows a group of channels that originate from the Elysium volcanic field. Called Granicus Vallis, these channels are related to the volcanic activity of Elysium Mons and may be lava channels rather than fluvial. Note the lava flows at the top of the image.Image information: IR instrument. Latitude 27.5, Longitude 132.9 East (227.1 West). 100 meter/pixel resolution.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This unnamed channel is located in the northern part of Terra Cimmeria. This image was captured by NASA's Mars Odyssey. | Context imageThis huge (or mega) gully is part of Noctis Labyrinthus. Located on the western end of Valles Marineris, Noctis Labyrinthus is a huge region of tectonically controlled valleys. The valleys are not as deep as Valles Marineris.Orbit Number: 40380 Latitude: -0.472578 Longitude: 119.01 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2011-01-21 05:47Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This view is a vertical projection that combines more than 500 exposures taken by NASA's Mars Phoenix Lander and projects them as if looking down from above. The black circle on the spacecraft is where the camera itself is mounted on the lander. | This view is a vertical projection that combines hundreds of exposures taken by the Surface Stereo Imager camera on NASA's Mars Phoenix Lander and projects them as if looking down from above.The black circle is where the camera itself is mounted on the lander, out of view in images taken by the camera. North is toward the top of the image.This view comprises more than 100 different Stereo Surface Imager pointings, with images taken through three different filters at each pointing. The images were taken throughout the period from the 13th Martian day, or sol, after landing to the 47th sol (June 5 through July 12, 2008). The lander's Robotic Arm appears cut off in this mosaic view because component images were taken when the arm was out of the frame. The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.Photojournal Note: As planned, the Phoenix lander, which landed May 25, 2008 23:53 UTC, ended communications in November 2008, about six months after landing, when its solar panels ceased operating in the dark Martian winter. | |
This image taken on Dec. 28, 2004 by NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity features an up-close view of the flank piece of the rover's broken heat shield laying on the red soil of martian terrain. | This image from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity features an up-close view of the flank piece of the rover's broken heat shield.The rover spent 36 sols investigating how the severe heating during entry through the atmosphere affected the heat shield. The most obvious is the fact that the heat shield inverted upon impact. Overall, engineers were interested in evaluating the performance of the heat shield's thermal protection system.This is the panormamic camera team's best current attempt at generating a "true color" view of what this scene would look like if viewed by a human on Mars. It was generated from a mathematical combination of six calibrated, left-eye panoramic camera images acquired around 3:07 p.m. local solar time on Opportunity's sol 331 (Dec. 28, 2004) using filters ranging in wavelengths from 430 to 750 nanometers. | |
This graph shows a spectrum recorded by the Chemistry and Camera instrument (ChemCam) in NASA's Curiosity Mars rover; it is is typical of Martian volcanic (basalt) material. | This graph shows a spectrum recorded by the Chemistry and Camera instrument (ChemCam) in NASA's Curiosity Mars rover. The instrument measured intensity of light at 6,144 wavelengths of ultraviolet, visible and infrared light emitted when it fired its laser at a rock target called "Ithaca." This spectrum averages data from multiple laser firings at the same point on the rock, the lowest point in a series of targeted points on the same rock examined on Oct. 30, 2013. The firings at this particular point included the 100,000th laser shot by Curiosity on Mars. The spectrum is typical of Martian volcanic (basalt) material. Although Ithaca is a sedimentary rock, the particles in the sediments that became the rock originated in igneous source rocks. The elements identified from the spectrum include a standard major-element suite of silicon, magnesium, aluminum, calcium, sodium, potassium, oxygen and titanium. Chromium and manganese, though not labelled, were also present.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., manages the Mars Science Laboratory Project and the mission's Curiosity rover for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The rover was designed and assembled at JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.More information about Curiosity is online at http://www.nasa.gov/msl and http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/. | |
This image, acquired by the panoramic camera on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity, highlights the vast plains of Meridiani Planum focusing on a sinous crack consisting of a series of deep dimples sprinkled with rocks. | This image, acquired by the panoramic camera on the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity, highlights the vast plains of Meridiani Planum. The science team is currently focused on the sinuous crack, which consists of a series of deep dimples sprinkled with rocks that resemble, from a distance, those in the "Eagle Crater" outcrop. On sol 70, Opportunity drove approximately 100 meters (about 328 feet) northeast to a target area along the crack dubbed "Anatolia." In the coming sols, the rover will study the crack in greater detail. | |
In this polar projection image taken on Oct. 17, 2009, NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity shows terrain which includes light-toned bedrock and darker ripples of wind-blown sand. | This mosaic of images from the navigation camera on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity shows surroundings of the rover's location following an 100.7-meter (330-foot) drive during the 2,393rd Martian day, or sol, of Opportunity's mission on Mars (Oct. 17, 2010). North is at the top.The camera took the component images for this 360-degree panorama during sols 2393 and 2394. The terrain includes light-toned bedrock and darker ripples of wind-blown sand. For scale, the distance between the parallel wheel tracks in the right half of the image is about 1 meter (about 40 inches).This view is presented as a polar projection. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows a portion of Shalbatana Vallis. | Context imageToday's VIS image shows a portion of Shalbatana Vallis. Located in Xanthe Terra, Shalbatana Vallis is an outflow channel carved by massive floods of escaping groundwater whose source lies far to the south of this image. Shalbatana Vallis is over 1300 km long (808 miles). This channel, and all others in this region, drain into Chryse Planitia.Orbit Number: 94027 Latitude: 4.12304 Longitude: 316.485 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2023-02-24 11:43Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image of Rabe Crater from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft is dominated by the extensive dunes that cover the crater floor. Part of the pit is visible, as well as a small peninsula that has been eroded into the upper level floor materials. | Context image This VIS image of Rabe Crater is dominated by the extensive dunes that cover the crater floor. To the top of the image part of the pit is visible, as well as a small peninsula that has been eroded into the upper level floor materials. On the upper elevation on the side left of the peninsula the dunes cascade onto the lower pit elevation. There is also a slight arc to the dunes on the pit floor due to how the peninsula changed the wind pattern.Rabe Crater is 108 km (67 miles) across. Craters of similar size often have flat floors. Rabe Crater has some areas of flat floor, but also has a large complex pit occupying a substantial part of the floor. The interior fill of the crater is thought to be layered sediments created by wind and or water action. The pit is eroded into this material. The eroded materials appear to have stayed within the crater forming a large sand sheet with surface dune forms as well as individual dunes where the crater floor is visible. The dunes also appear to be moving from the upper floor level into the pit.The Odyssey spacecraft has spent over 15 years in orbit around Mars, circling the planet more than 69000 times. It holds the record for longest working spacecraft at Mars. THEMIS, the IR/VIS camera system, has collected data for the entire mission and provides images covering all seasons and lighting conditions. Over the years many features of interest have received repeated imaging, building up a suite of images covering the entire feature. From the deepest chasma to the tallest volcano, individual dunes inside craters and dune fields that encircle the north pole, channels carved by water and lava, and a variety of other feature, THEMIS has imaged them all. For the next several months the image of the day will focus on the Tharsis volcanoes, the various chasmata of Valles Marineris, and the major dunes fields. We hope you enjoy these images!Orbit Number: 52206 Latitude: -43.6573 Longitude: 34.9551 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2013-09-20 13:07Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows a small portion of Olympia Undae, an extensive dune field near the north polar cap. | Context imageThis VIS image shows a small portion of Olympia Undae, an extensive dune field near the north polar cap. This image was collected during summer, so the dunes are free of surface frost.Orbit Number: 62467 Latitude: 80.517 Longitude: 165.94 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2016-01-13 07:49Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
Yogi,' a rock taller than NASA's rover Sojourner taken in stereo by NASA's Mars Pathfinder. 3D glasses are necessary to identify surface detail. | "Yogi," a rock taller than rover Sojourner, is the subject of this image, taken in stereo by the deployed Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP) on Sol 3. 3D glasses are necessary to identify surface detail. The soil in the foreground has been the location of multiple soil mechanics experiments performed by Sojourner's cleated wheels. Pathfinder scientists were able to control the force inflicted on the soil beneath the rover's wheels, giving them insight into the soil's mechanical properties. The soil mechanics experiments were conducted after this image was taken.Mars Pathfinder is the second in NASA's Discovery program of low-cost spacecraft with highly focused science goals. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, developed and manages the Mars Pathfinder mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. JPL is an operating division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). The Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP) was developed by the University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory under contract to JPL. Peter Smith is the Principal Investigator.Click below to see the left and right views individually.LeftRight
Photojournal note: Sojourner spent 83 days of a planned seven-day mission exploring the Martian terrain, acquiring images, and taking chemical, atmospheric and other measurements. The final data transmission received from Pathfinder was at 10:23 UTC on September 27, 1997. Although mission managers tried to restore full communications during the following five months, the successful mission was terminated on March 10, 1998. | |
Rock fins up to about 1 foot (30 centimeters) tall dominate this stereo scene from the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity taken during the 3,058th Martian day (Aug. 23, 2012). | Rock fins up to about 1 foot (30 centimeters) tall dominate this stereo scene from the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity. The component images were taken during the 3,058th Martian day, or sol, of Opportunity's work on Mars (Aug. 23, 2012). This outcrop is within an area informally named "Matijevic Hill."This stereo mosaic combines views from the left eye and right eye of the Pancam to appear three-dimensional when seen through blue-red glasses.The view spans an area of terrain about 30 feet (9 meters) wide. Orbital investigation of the area has identified a possibility of clay minerals in this area of the Cape York segment of the western rim of Endeavour Crater. | |
NASA's Opportunity had driven 62.5 meters (205 feet) on April 7, 2009, southward away from an outcrop called 'Penrhyn,' which the rover had been examining for a few sols, and toward a crater called 'Adventure.' 3D glasses are necessary to view this image. | Left-eye view of a color stereo pair for PIA12125Right-eye view of a color stereo pair for PIA12125NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity used its navigation camera to take the images combined into this stereo, 360-degree view of the rover's surroundings on the 1,850th Martian day, or sol, of its surface mission (April 7, 2009). The view appears three-dimensional when viewed through red-blue glasses with the red lens on the left.Opportunity had driven 62.5 meters (205 feet) that sol, southward away from an outcrop called "Penrhyn," which the rover had been examining for a few sols, and toward a crater called "Adventure." In preceding drives, the drive motor for the right-front wheel had been drawing more current than usual, so engineers drove Opportunuity backward on Sol 1950, a strategy to redistribute lubricant and reduce friction in the wheel.North is at the top of the image; south at the bottom. Opportunity's position on Sol 1850 was about 1.3 kilometers (0.8 mile) south-southwest of Victoria Crater. For scale, the distance between the parallel wheel tracks is about 1 meter (about 40 inches).This panorama combines right-eye and left-eye views presented as cylindrical-perspective projections with geometric seam correction. | |
The THEMIS camera contains 5 filters. Data from different filters can be combined in multiple ways to create a false color image. This image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows part of Ganges Chasma. | Context image The THEMIS VIS camera contains 5 filters. The data from different filters can be combined in multiple ways to create a false color image. These false color images may reveal subtle variations of the surface not easily identified in a single band image. Today's false color image shows part of Ganges Chasma. Dunes are visible on the floor of the canyon [bottom right corner].Orbit Number: 52184 Latitude: -7.21971 Longitude: 314.698 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2013-09-18 17:29Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows northern plains of Mars exhibit craters that often appear to be partly buried by or exhumed from beneath layers of pitted and eroded material. | The northern plains of Mars exhibit craters that often appear to be partly buried by or exhumed from beneath layers of pitted and eroded material. This example was taken by MOC in August 1998. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows erosional remnants of layered rock and large windblown ripples on the floor of a crater in the Tyrrhena Terra region of Mars. The layered rocks are most likely sedimentary. | 13 July 2006This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows erosional remnants of layered rock and large windblown ripples on the floor of a crater in the Tyrrhena Terra region of Mars. The layered rocks are most likely sedimentary.Location near: 15.5°S, 270.5°W Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi) Illumination from: upper left Season: Southern Autumn | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows part of the floor of Kaiser Crater. Kaiser Crater is 207 km (129 miles) in diameter and is located in Noachis Terra west of Hellas Planitia. | Context imageThe THEMIS VIS camera contains 5 filters. The data from different filters can be combined in multiple ways to create a false color image. These false color images may reveal subtle variations of the surface not easily identified in a single band image. This false color image shows part of the floor of Kaiser Crater. Kaiser Crater is 207 km (129 miles) in diameter and is located in Noachis Terra west of Hellas Planitia. This sand dune field is one of several regions of sand dunes located in the southern part of the crater floor.With enough wind and sand, sand dunes are formed. Dune morphology typically has a shallow slope on the side the wind is blowing from and a steep face on the other side. The lighter part of the dunes in this image are the steep slopes. Wind blows sand particles up the shallow slope and then the particles 'fall' off the crest of the dune down the steep side. With time, the constant wind will move the crest of the dune forward. Depending on the amount of available sand, dunes can grow to large heights and sizes. The dunes in this image are moving west – towards the left side of the image. Dark blue in this false color combination are typically basaltic sand.The THEMIS VIS camera is capable of capturing color images of the Martian surface using five different color filters. In this mode of operation, the spatial resolution and coverage of the image must be reduced to accommodate the additional data volume produced from using multiple filters. To make a color image, three of the five filter images (each in grayscale) are selected. Each is contrast enhanced and then converted to a red, green, or blue intensity image. These three images are then combined to produce a full color, single image. Because the THEMIS color filters don't span the full range of colors seen by the human eye, a color THEMIS image does not represent true color. Also, because each single-filter image is contrast enhanced before inclusion in the three-color image, the apparent color variation of the scene is exaggerated. Nevertheless, the color variation that does appear is representative of some change in color, however subtle, in the actual scene. Note that the long edges of THEMIS color images typically contain color artifacts that do not represent surface variation.Orbit Number: 92016 Latitude: -46.8341 Longitude: 19.8564 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2022-09-11 21:26Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
Jibsheet' in False Color | NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit drove up to this outcrop, called "Jibsheet," on the flank of "Husband Hill," in early March 2005. This view of Jibsheet by Spirit's panoramic camera is presented in false color. | |
This stereo view from the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows the terrain ahead of the rover as it makes its way westward through a valley called 'Artist's Drive.' 3-D glasses are need to view this image. | This stereo view from the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows the terrain ahead of the rover as it makes its way westward through a valley called "Artist's Drive." The image appears three-dimensional when viewed through red-blue glasses with the red lens on the left.The Navcam recorded the component images of this mosaic on April 10, 2015, during the 951st Martian Day, or sol, of Curiosity's work on Mars. The valley is on the rover's route toward a higher site on Mount Sharp than the "Pahrump Hills" area the mission investigated at the base of the layered mountain.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, manages the Mars Science Laboratory Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. JPL designed and built the project's Curiosity rover and the rover's Navcam.More information about Curiosity is online at http://www.nasa.gov/msl and http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/. | |
This picture from NASA's Viking Orbiter 2 shows areas of central Valles Marineris, Mars, including Candor Chasm (lower left), Ophir Chasm (lower right), and Hebes Chasm (upper right). | This picture (centered at latitude 4 degrees S., longitude 76 degrees W.) shows areas of central Valles Marineris, including Candor Chasm (lower left), Ophir Chasm (lower right), and Hebes Chasm (upper right). Complex layered deposits in the canyons may have been deposited in lakes, and if so, are of great interest for future searches for fossil life on Mars. The pinkish deposits in Candor Chasm may be due to hydrothermal alterations and the production of crystalline ferric oxides (Geissler et al., 1993, Icarus 106,380). Viking Orbiter Picture Numbers 279B02 (violet), 279B10 (green), and 279B12 (red) at 240 m/pixel resolution. Picture width is 231 km. North is 47 degrees clockwise from top. | |
NASA's Perseverance Mars rover is visible in the upper left corner of this image the agency's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter took during its third flight, on April 25, 2021. | Figure 1Figure 2Click on images for larger versions
NASA's Perseverance Mars rover is visible in the upper left corner of this image the agency's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter took during its third flight, on April 25, 2021. The helicopter was flying at an altitude of 16 feet (5 meters) and roughly 279 feet (85 meters) from the rover at the time.
The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter was built by JPL, which also manages this technology demonstration project for NASA Headquarters. It is supported by NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, and Space Technology Mission Directorate. NASA's Ames Research Center and Langley Research Center provided significant flight performance analysis and technical assistance during Ingenuity_x0092_s development. AeroVironment Inc., Qualcomm, Snapdragon, and SolAero also provided design assistance and major vehicle components. The Mars Helicopter Delivery System was designed and manufactured by Lockheed Space Systems in Denver. | |
Hazy Conditions in Hellas Dao | Image PSP_001477_1400 was taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera onboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft on November 19, 2006. The complete image is centered at -39.6 degrees latitude, 82.2 degrees East longitude. The range to the target site was 255.5 km (159.7 miles). At this distance the image scale is 102.2 cm/pixel (with 4 x 4 binning) so objects ~307 cm across are resolved. The image shown here has been map-projected to 100 cm/pixel and north is up. The image was taken at a local Mars time of 3:40 PM and the scene is illuminated from the west with a solar incidence angle of 76 degrees, thus the sun was about 14 degrees above the horizon. At a solar longitude of 137.7 degrees, the season on Mars is Northern Summer.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, is the prime contractor for the project and built the spacecraft. The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment is operated by the University of Arizona, Tucson, and the instrument was built by Ball Aerospace and Technology Corp., Boulder, Colo. | |
This image shows finely layered rocks interspersed with sand sloping downward and inward toward the center of the panorama from either side. Here and there on the outcrop, a chunk of rock has become displaced and lies at an angle on the surface | Click on the image for 'Gibson' Panorama by Spirit at 'Home Plate' (QTVR)NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit acquired this high-resolution view of intricately layered exposures of rock while parked on the northwest edge of the bright, semi-circular feature known as "Home Plate." The rover was perched at a 27-degree upward tilt while creating the panorama, resulting in the "U" shape of the mosaic. In reality, the features along the 1-meter to 2-meter (1-foot to 6.5-foot) vertical exposure of the rim of Home Plate in this vicinity are relatively level. Rocks near the rover in this view, known as the "Gibson" panorama, include "Barnhill," "Rogan," and "Mackey."Spirit acquired 246 separate images of this scene using 6 different filters on the panoramic camera (Pancam) during the rover's Martian days, or sols, 748 through 751 (Feb. 9 through Feb. 12, 2006). The field of view covers 160 degrees of terrain around the rover. This image is an approximately true-color rendering using Pancam's 753-nanometer, 535-namometer, and 432-nanometer filters. Image-to-image seams have been eliminated from the sky portion of the mosaic to better simulate the vista a person standing on Mars would see. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows Terra Cimmeria containing dune fields located both on the floor of craters and on the plains between craters | Context image for PIA10042Southern DunesThis infrared image of Terra Cimmeria contains dune fields located both on the floor of craters and on the plains between craters. Collected during the middle of southern summer, there is no longer any frost cover and the dunes are bright (warm) in the infrared.Image information: IR instrument. Latitude -72.6N, Longitude 162.9E. 96 meter/pixel resolution.Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows part of the dune field on the floor of Proctor Crater. | Originally released on Oct. 3, 2013Context imageToday's VIS image shows part of the dune field on the floor of Proctor Crater.Orbit Number: 51794 Latitude: -47.4051 Longitude: 30.9037 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2013-08-17 15:31Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows linear depressions, part of Cerberus Fossae. | Context imageThe linear depressions in today's VIS image are part of Cerberus Fossae. The features are termed grabens, and are formed by extensional tectonic forces. As the regional fractures move apart, blocks of material subside between paired faults. The straight sides and uniform depths are indications that this is tectonic feature rather than a channel caused by fluid erosion. The fossae stretch for 1235km (767 miles).Orbit Number: 85522 Latitude: 9.58809 Longitude: 159.803 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2021-03-26 04:37Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows a crater within the larger Schiaparelli Crater. | Like any diverse group of explorers, scientists on the HiRISE team and the general public who submit target suggestions have different goals and interests for the Mars images they hope to get. More often than not, an image intended for one particular science investigation ends up having many other applications, answering and raising new questions. This image was targeted to look at potential changes in the distribution of dark sand compared to earlier pictures (PSP_005897_1790 three Mars years ago and ESP_016406_1790/ESP_017118_1790, approximately 1.5 Mars years ago). In a preliminary investigation, no such changes have been found, although we will keep looking.Originally, this area -- a crater within the larger Schiaparelli Crater -- was targeted to investigate the circumferential layers that fill the crater, evidence for possible past deposition from airfall dust or even water. In this image, we note something that becomes apparent if we zoom in to many of the areas containing dark sand. Here, the sand is on top of periodic bedrock edges oriented semi-radially from the crater and approximately perpendicular to the layers. How did these ridges form, and what is the relationship to the sand?The ridge origin is a mystery, but the sand may simply be nucleating on the ridges. This suggests that some apparent large ripples on Mars are sand nucleation sites on pre-existing topography. The extent of such ridges, and their relationship to sand elsewhere on the planet, can be further understood with future HiRISE images in other areas.HiRISE is one of six instruments on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates the orbiter's HiRISE camera, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for the NASA Science Mission Directorate, Washington. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows part of Apollinaris Sulci. Yardangs are created by long term winds scouring a poor cemented surface material into linear ridges and valleys. | Context imageToday's VIS image shows part of Apollinaris Sulci. Yardangs are present at the top of this VIS image. These features are created by long term winds scouring a poor cemented surface material into linear ridges and valleys. The direction of the ridge/valley is aligned with the wind direction, indicating the dominant wind direction in this region was north/south. These yardangs are the southern margin of Apollinaris Sulci, located south of Apollinaris Mons. It has been suggested that this region of Mars provides a large percentage of the surface dust seen around the planet. Ash falls from nearby volcanoes may have been the source of the surface materials eroded into these and other wind etched landforms.Orbit Number: 86395 Latitude: -12.5877 Longitude: 177.796 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2021-06-06 01:38Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
Monohydrated Sulfates in Aurorae Chaos | This image of sulfate-containing deposits in Aurorae Chaos was taken by the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) at 0653 UTC (2:53 a.m. EDT) on June 10, 2007, near 7.5 degrees south latitude, 327.25 degrees east longitude. CRISM's image was taken in 544 colors covering 0.36-3.92 micrometers, and shows features as small as 40 meters (132 feet) across. The region covered is roughly 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) wide at its narrowest point.Aurorae Chaos lies east of the Valles Marineris canyon system. Its western edge extends toward Capri and Eos Chasmata, while its eastern edge connects with Aureum Chaos. Some 750 kilometers (466 miles) wide, Aurorae Chaos is most likely the result of collapsed surface material that settled when subsurface ice or water was released.The top panel in the montage above shows the location of the CRISM image on a mosaic taken by the Mars Odyssey spacecraft's Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS). The CRISM data covers an area featuring several knobs of erosion-resistant material at one end of what appears to be a large teardrop shaped plateau. Similar plateaus occur throughout the interior of Valles Marineris, and they are formed of younger, typically layered rocks that post-date formation of the canyon system. Many of the deposits contain sulfate-rich layers, hinting at ancient saltwater.The center left image, an infrared false color image, reveals a swath of light-colored material draped over the knobs. The center right image unveils the mineralogical composition of the area, with yellow representing monohydrated sulfates (sulfates with one water molecule incorporated into each molecule of the mineral).The lower two images are renderings of data draped over topography with 5 times vertical exaggeration. These images provide a view of the topography and reveal how the monohydrated sulfate-containing deposits drape over the knobs and also an outcrop in lower-elevation parts of the plateau.CRISM is one of six science instruments on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Led by The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Md., the CRISM team includes expertise from universities, government agencies and small businesses in the United States and abroad. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and the Mars Science Laboratory for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, built the orbiter. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows Olympia Undae in the middle of north polar spring. | Context imageThis VIS image of Olympia Undae was collected in the middle of north polar spring. As the season changes into summertime, the dune crests will lose all the winter frosts, completely revealing the darker sand beneath. The density of dunes and the alignments of the dune crests varies with location, controlled by the amount of available sand and the predominant winds over time.Olympia Undae is a vast dune field in the north polar region of Mars. It consists of a broad sand sea or erg that partly rings the north polar cap from about 120° to 240°E longitude and 78° to 83°N latitude. The dune field covers an area of approximately 470,000 km2 (bigger than California, smaller than Texas). Olympia Undae is the largest continuous dune field on Mars. Olympia Undae is not the only dune field near the north polar cap, several other smaller fields exist in the same latitude, but in other ranges of longitude, e.g. Abolos and Siton Undae. Barchan and transverse dune forms are the most common. In regions with limited available sand individual barchan dunes will form, the surface beneath and between the dunes is visible. In regions with large sand supplies, the sand sheet covers the underlying surface, and dune forms are found modifying the surface of the sand sheet. In this case transverse dunes are more common. Barchan dunes "point" down wind, transverse dunes are more linear and form parallel to the wind direction. The "square" shaped transverse dunes in Olympia Undae are due to two prevailing wind directions.Orbit Number: 86712 Latitude: 80.9536 Longitude: 222.236 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2021-07-02 04:40Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
The yellow triangles on this graph indicate concentrations of the elements titanium and silicon in selected rock targets with high silica content analyzed by the APXS instrument on NASA's Curiosity rover in Mars' Gale Crater. | The yellow triangles on this graph indicate concentrations of the elements titanium and silicon in selected rock targets with high silica content analyzed by the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) instrument on NASA's Curiosity rover in Mars' Gale Crater. The pattern shows a correlation between enriched silicon content and enriched titanium content. Titanium is difficult to mobilize in weathering environments, and this correlation suggests that both titanium and silicon remain as the residue of acidic weathering. Ongoing research aims to distinguish between that possible explanation for silicon enrichment and an alternative of mobilized silicon being added to the site (see PIA20275).As a general comparison with these selected high-silica targets in Gale Crater, the gray dots in the graph show the range of titanium and silicon concentrations in all Martian targets analyzed by APXS instruments on three Mars rovers at three different areas of Mars.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, manages the Mars Science Laboratory Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. JPL designed and built the project's Curiosity rover. More information about Curiosity is online at http://www.nasa.gov/msl and http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/. | |
This image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey shows a huge ridge of sand in Russell Crater that makes its dune field one of the most unusual on Mars. | Context imageThe huge ridge of sand in Russell Crater makes its dune field one of the most unusual on Mars.Orbit Number: 41208 Latitude: 13.0148 Longitude: 74.2559 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2011-03-30 08:19Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
These images show NASA's Mars Pathfinder's backshell to the southeast of the lander, and in front and to the left of 'Big Crater' after landing on Mars in 1997. | During the Entry, Descent and Landing phase of the mission, the final step is the separation of the lander and its surrounding airbags from the backshell. The conical backshell above the lander contains three solid rocketmotors each providing about a ton of force for over 2 seconds. They are activated by the computer in the lander. Electrical wires that run up the bridle close relays in the backshell which ignite the three rockets at the same instant.The brief firing of the solid rocketmotors at an altitude of 80-100 meters is intended to essentially bring the downward movement of the lander to a halt some 12 meters above the surface. The bridle separating the lander and heat shield is then cut in the lander, resulting in the backshell driving up and into the parachute under the residual impulse of the rockets, while the lander, encased in airbags, falls to the surface.The backshell is to the southeast of the lander, and in front and to the left of "Big Crater."Mars Pathfinder is the second in NASA's Discovery program of low-cost spacecraft with highly focused science goals. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, developed and manages and Mars Pathfinder mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. JPL is an operating division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). The Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP) was developed by the University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory under contract to JPL. Peter Smith is the Principal Investigator.
Photojournal note: Sojourner spent 83 days of a planned seven-day mission exploring the Martian terrain, acquiring images, and taking chemical, atmospheric and other measurements. The final data transmission received from Pathfinder was at 10:23 UTC on September 27, 1997. Although mission managers tried to restore full communications during the following five months, the successful mission was terminated on March 10, 1998. | |
Spirit's Extended-Mission Destination | The drive route planned for NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit during its extended mission is represented by the green line in this traverse map. The gold line traces the path Spirit drove during its prime mission of 90 sols.One objective for the rover's extended mission is to continue eastward to reach the high ground named "Columbia Hills," still about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) away at the beginning of the extended mission. The base image for this map was taken from orbit by NASA's Mars Global Surveyor. The entire area is within Gusev Crater. | |
Blue dots on this map indicate sites of recurring slope lineae (RSL) in part of the Valles Marineris canyon network on Mars, from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. | Blue dots on this map indicate sites of recurring slope lineae (RSL) in part of the Valles Marineris canyon network on Mars. RSL are seasonal dark streaks regarded as the strongest evidence for the possibility of liquid water on the surface of modern Mars. The area mapped here has the highest density of known RSL on the Red Planet.The RSL were identified by repeated observations of the sites using the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Map colors represent elevation, where red is high and blue is low. Valles Marineris is the largest canyon system in the solar system. The region shown here includes Melas Chasma and Coprates Chasma, in the central and eastern portions of Valles Marineris. The mapped area extends about 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) east to west and about 280 miles (450 kilometers) north to south, at latitudes from 9 to 17 degrees south of Mars' equator. The base map uses data from the Mars Orbiter Camera and Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter of NASA's Mars Global Surveyor mission.RSL extend downslope during a warm season, fade in the colder part of the year, and repeat the process in a subsequent Martian year. A study of 41 RSL sites in this canyon area, published July 7, 2016, provides support for the notion that significant amounts of near-surface water can be found on modern Mars, though the work also indicates that puzzles remain unsolved in understanding how these seasonal features form. Each site includes anywhere from a few to more than 1,000 individual "lineae." The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates HiRISE, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows a typical north polar scarp and associated dark, windblown sand dunes on Mars. Layers of material, possibly dust and ice, are exposed by the scarp. | 16 November 2004This 1.6 meters (~5 feet) per pixel Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a typical north polar scarp and associated dark, windblown sand dunes. Layers of material -- possibly dust and ice -- are exposed by the scarp. The small white patches in the image are remnants of seasonal frost. When this north polar image was acquired in late September 2004, most of the polar frost had sublimed away. This image is located near 85.1°N, 210.8°W. The scene covers an area approximately 3 km (1.9 mi) across, and is illuminated by sunlight from the lower left. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows Lucus Planum. The surface in this image has been eroded by the wind to form features called yardangs. | Context imageToday's VIS image is located on Lucus Planum. The surface in this image has been eroded by the wind to form features called yardangs. Yardangs form in a poorly cemented material where the wind cuts linear valleys, removing some of the material and leaving parallel ridges behind. The direction of the ridge/valley is aligned with the wind direction. The dominant wind direction in this region is along a northeast/southwest trend; however, other wind directions can occur within a localized region. There is a circular feature in the lower left side of the image. This is likely the remains of a crater. Meteor impacts melt the surface and subsurface, creating a harder material then the surrounding surfaces. The remnant of the crater are still visible due to being a more resistant material.Orbit Number: 81740 Latitude: -1.61604 Longitude: 187.227 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2020-05-18 18:55Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft captured this image on Feb. 19, 2012, 10 years to the day after the camera recorded its first view of Mars. This image covers an area in the Nepenthes Mensae region north of the Martian equator. | The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) camera on NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft has completed an unprecedented full decade of observing Mars from orbit. THEMIS captured this image on Feb. 19, 2012, 10 years to the day after the camera recorded its first view of Mars. This image covers an area 11 by 32 miles (19 by 52 kilometers) in the Nepenthes Mensae region north of the Martian equator. The view depicts a knobby landscape where the southern highlands are breaking up as the terrain descends into the northern lowlands.Odyssey, launched in 2001, has worked at Mars longer than any mission in history. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., manages the Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. THEMIS was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Philip Christensen at ASU. Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Denver built the spacecraft. JPL and Lockheed Martin collaborate on operating it. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.For more information about Mars Odyssey, visit http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/odyssey. For more about THEMIS, see http://themis.asu.edu/. | |
This image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey shows some of the effects that wind action has on the surface of Mars. This image is located near Zephyria Planum. Winds in the region have eroded and etched the surface materials. | Context imageThis VIS image shows some of the effects that wind action has on the surface of Mars. This image is located near Zephyria Planum. Winds in the region have eroded and etched the surface materials.Orbit Number: 36112 Latitude: -5.42819 Longitude: 154.63 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2010-02-03 17:38Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows the edge of a trough, which is part of a large pit crater complex in Noachis Terra on Mars. This type of trough forms through the collapse of surface materials into the subsurface, beginning as individual pit craters. | 6 April 2006This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows the edge (running diagonally from the lower left to the upper right) of a trough, which is part of a large pit crater complex in Noachis Terra. This type of trough forms through the collapse of surface materials into the subsurface, and often begins as a series of individual pit craters. Over time, continued collapse increases the diameter of individual pits until finally, adjacent pits merge to form a trough such as the one captured in this image. The deep shadowed area is caused in part by an overhang; layered rock beneath this overhang is less resistant to erosion, and thus has retreated tens of meters backward, beneath the overhang. A person could walk up inside this "cave" formed by the overhanging layered material.Location near: 47.0°S, 355.7°W Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi) Illumination from: upper left Season: Southern Summer | |
The objective of this observation from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is to examine a light-toned deposit in a region of what is called 'chaotic terrain' at the base of the Valles Marineris canyon system. | Map Projected Browse ImageClick on the image for larger versionThe objective of this observation is to examine a light-toned deposit in a region of what is called "chaotic terrain" at the base of the Valles Marineris canyon system.The deposit displays a rough surface, in contrast to the smoothness of the surrounding area. Some parts of the surface appear as if they were eroded by a fluid flowing north and south, or perhaps sculpted by the wind. This area is also visible in a Context Camera image (P04_002747_1736). This deposit may be related to interior layered deposits in the Valles Marineris where it's been suggested to have formed in an ancient lake.This caption is based on the original science rationale.HiRISE is one of six instruments on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates HiRISE, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colorado. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. | |
Plains West of Viking Lander 2 | Image PSP_001435_2280 was taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera onboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft on November 16, 2006. The complete image is centered at 47.7 degrees latitude, 134.0 degrees East longitude. The range to the target site was 316.0 km (197.5 miles). At this distance the image scale is 31.6 cm/pixel (with 1 x 1 binning) so objects ~95 cm across are resolved. The image shown here has been map-projected to 25 cm/pixel and north is up. The image was taken at a local Mars time of 3:11 PM and the scene is illuminated from the west with a solar incidence angle of 49 degrees, thus the sun was about 41 degrees above the horizon. At a solar longitude of 136.2 degrees, the season on Mars is Northern Summer.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, is the prime contractor for the project and built the spacecraft. The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment is operated by the University of Arizona, Tucson, and the instrument was built by Ball Aerospace and Technology Corp., Boulder, Colo. | |
The bright areas in this image from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter are covered by carbon dioxide frost, and the 'swiss cheese' terrain typical of the south polar residual cap covers much of the imaged area. | This 4 kilometer diameter feature near the edge of the South polar residual cap was recognized in Mariner 9 and Viking Orbiter images taken in the 1970s, but its origin could not be inferred. It was therefore targeted for HiRISE stereo imaging.The bright areas in this image are covered by carbon dioxide frost, and the "swiss cheese" terrain typical of the south polar residual cap covers much of the imaged area. The dark walls of the circular depression do not have as much frost on them, and are fractured in a polygonal pattern. Apparently the surface of the walls has been extensively modified by thermal expansion and contraction of water ice.It also appears that the "swiss cheese" terrain of the residual cap has buried the floor of the circular depression, as well as the terrain surrounding the feature, making it difficult to infer the origin of this depression. Its circular symmetry is consistent with an impact origin, but there is no evidence of a crater rim or ejecta (perhaps because they have been buried). The depression may have formed by collapse, but there is little evidence of extensional fractures that would be expected around a collapse pit. Analysis of HiRISE stereo data may help the interpretation of this feature.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, built the spacecraft. The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment is operated by the University of Arizona, Tucson, and the instrument was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo.Originally released October 3, 2007 | |
Shown here is a digital mosaic of Olympus Mons, the largest known volcano in the Solar System, as seen by NASA's Viking Orbiter 1. Much of the plains surrounding the volcano are covered by the ridged and grooved 'aureole' of Olympus Mons. | Shown here is a digital mosaic of Olympus Mons, the largest known volcano in the Solar System. It is 27 kilometers high, over 600 kilometers at the base, and is surrounded by a well-defined scarp that is up to 6 km high. Lava flows drape over the scarp in places. Much of the plains surrounding the volcano are covered by the ridged and grooved 'aureole' of Olympus Mons. The origin of the aureole is controversial, but may be related to gravity sliding off of the flanks of an ancestral volcano. The summit caldera (central depression) is almost 3 km deep and 25 km across. It probably formed from recurrent collapse following drainage of magma resulting from flank eruptions. | |
These two thumbnail images, with the ghostly dot of a faint Sun near the middle of each, are the last images NASA's Opportunity rover took on Mars. | Figure 1Figure 2 These two thumbnail images, with the ghostly dot of a faint Sun near the middle of each, are the last images NASA's Opportunity rover took on Mars as a dust storm darkened the sky.These images from the left and right eyes of the Panoramic Camera (Pancam) were used to estimate how opaque the atmosphere was (a measurement known as "tau") on Opportunity's final day of operation. With a tau of about 10.8 on that day, scientists knew that only a tiny amount of sunlight was getting through the dust. The left and right Pancam eyes had camera filters that typically help with geological investigations: 440-nanometer (deep blue) and 750-nanometer (red to infrared) filters, respectively. These filters would normally result in overexposed images, but with such weak sunlight, scientists were able to point the Pancams at the Sun and determine the tau.The left Pancam image (Figure 1) has more wavy gradations. In the right Pancam image (Figure 2), the Sun appears as the larger whitish feature in the middle of the frame.These images were taken in Perseverance Valley around 9:33 a.m. PDT (12:33 a.m. EDT) on June 10, 2018 (the 5,111st Martian day, or sol, of Opportunity's mission). These thumbnails were not the last images transmitted by the rover: The last image sent (PIA22929) is a partial full-frame image of a dark sky. While full-frame image versions are typically sent after thumbnails, the full-frame versions of these images with faint spots of sun were never transmitted.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, California, manages the Mars Exploration Rover Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington.For more information about Opportunity, visit https://www.nasa.gov/rovers and https://mars.nasa.gov/mer. | |
These windstreaks are located on the downwind side of impact craters located in Syrtis Major on Mars as seen by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft. | Context image for PIA03053 Syrtis Major WindstreaksThese windstreaks are located on the downwind side of impact craters located in Syrtis Major.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 0.1N, Longitude 70.1E. 17 meter/pixel resolution.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey released on Nov 25, 2003 shows abundant dust devil tracks on Mars. Dark streaks across much of the surface are formed when dust devils sweep up the dust and reveal the darker underlying terrain. | Released 25 November 2003Abundant dust devil tracks dominate the scene in this THEMIS visible image. The dark streaks across much of the surface are formed when dust devils sweep up the dust and reveal the darker underlying terrain. Notice how the dust devil tracks are continuous over changes in topography (e.g. crater rims) and how the lengths and thicknesses of the tracks vary. This indicates that the dust devils vary in their size and duration.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude -61.4, Longitude 120.2 East (239.8 West). 19 meter/pixel resolution.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows an ancient lava flow surface near the volcano, Ascraeus Mons on Mars. The volcanic material has been completely covered by thick accumulations of dust. | 17 November 2005This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows an ancient lava flow surface near the volcano, Ascraeus Mons. The volcanic material has been completely covered by thick accumulations of dust. An earlier accumulation of dust or ash was eroded by wind to form the sharp, nearly triangular hills and ridges seen on top of the flow surfaces. A small impact crater with bouldery ejecta has formed on top of the old flow material in the southern (lower) quarter of the image.Location near: 8.5°N, 110.5°W Image width: width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi) Illumination from: lower left Season: Northern Autumn | |
By high summer, the extensive dune fields of the north polar region are completely defrosted and the number and variety of dunes are readily visible. This image was captured by NASA's Mars Odyssey on August 31, 2010. | Context imageBy high summer, the extensive dune fields of the north polar region are completely defrosted and the number and variety of dunes are readily visible.Orbit Number: 38652 Latitude: 77.8461 Longitude: 311.187 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2010-08-31 22:31Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows a small portion of Gigas Sulci. | Context image Today's VIS image shows a small portion of Gigas Sulci. Located in the Tharsis region, these small linear ridges follow two trends at angle to each other, one toward the upper left corner and the other generally across from right to left. Small dunes are located between the ridges. The ridges were most likely formed by tectonic activity.Orbit Number: 65422 Latitude: 9.32915 Longitude: 231.265 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2016-09-12 16:56Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
Located on the floor of an unnamed crater in Terra Sirenum, the crater in the center of the this image captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft has numerous gullies on the inner rim. | Context imageLocated on the floor of an unnamed crater in Terra Sirenum, the crater in the center of the VIS image has numerous gullies on the inner rim. An ejecta deposit from a near by crater is visible at the bottom on this image.Orbit Number: 56451 Latitude: -38.1315 Longitude: 224.023 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2014-09-04 22:05Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows a region of Mars' north polar dunes with less dune materials than other portions of the north polar erg. | Context image for PIA10878Polar DunesThis region of north polar dunes has less dune materials than other portions of the north polar erg. This allows the base that the dunes are moving across to be observed.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 77.9N, Longitude 116.7E. 20 meter/pixel resolution.Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This anaglyph, acquired by NASA's Phoenix Lander shows a stereoscopic 3D view of a trench informally called 'Snow White' dug by Phoenix's Robotic Arm. 3D glasses are necessary to view this image. | This anaglyph, acquired by NASA's Phoenix Lander's Surface Stereo Imager on Sol 36, the 36th Martian day of the mission (July 1, 2008), shows a stereoscopic 3D view of a trench informally called "Snow White" dug by Phoenix's Robotic Arm. Phoenix's solar panel is seen in the bottom right corner of the image.The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.Photojournal Note: As planned, the Phoenix lander, which landed May 25, 2008 23:53 UTC, ended communications in November 2008, about six months after landing, when its solar panels ceased operating in the dark Martian winter. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows a portion of Cyane Sulci. | Context imageThe top of today's VIS image shows a portion of Cyane Sulci. Located to the northeast of Olympus Mons, Cyane Sulci is a complexly fractured region of material inundated on its margins by volcanic flows.Orbit Number: 94217 Latitude: 22.1596 Longitude: 232.704 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2023-03-12 03:17Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows dark, windblown sand dunes in the north polar region of Mars. A vast sea of sand dunes nearly surrounds the north polar cap during the northern summer in December 2004. | 20 January 2004This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image, acquired during northern summer in December 2004, shows dark, windblown sand dunes in the north polar region of Mars. A vast sea of sand dunes nearly surrounds the north polar cap. These landforms are located near 80.3°N, 144.1°W. Light-toned features in the image are exposures of the substrate that underlies the dune field. The image covers an area about 3 km (1.9 mi) wide and is illuminated by sunlight from the lower left. | |
Sinuous Ridges in Argyre Basin | This HiRISE image covers a portion of a sinuous ridge on the floor of Argyre Basin in the southern hemisphere of Mars (55.0 degrees south, 319.2 east). The ridge is one of a number of similar ridges that split and rejoin as they wind across the floor of the basin and around hills and mountains. It is unclear what process is responsible for formation of the ridges, but glacial, coastal, and fluvial processes have all been suggested.For example, they may represent ancient coastal shorelines, sediments deposited in a river flowing under glacial ice, or an ancient river bed that has been left standing in relief as surrounding, probably finer grained sediments were subsequently eroded away.The HiRISE image shows that the sediments forming the ridge include many large boulders that are often 1-2 meters or more in diameter. In addition, the sediments appear to occur in crude layers in a few locations. Such characteristics hold important clues to the process(es) responsible for formation of the ridge.For example, if the ridge is the deposit formed by an ancient river then it may be difficult to account for the transport of so many large boulders.Observation GeometryImage PSP_001508_1245 was taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera onboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft on 21-Nov-2006. The complete image is centered at -55.0 degrees latitude, 319.2 degrees East longitude. The range to the target site was 251.0 km (156.9 miles). At this distance the image scale is 50.2 cm/pixel (with 2 x 2 binning) so objects ~151 cm across are resolved. The image shown here has been map-projected to 50 cm/pixel and north is up. The image was taken at a local Mars time of 03:47 PM and the scene is illuminated from the west with a solar incidence angle of 86 degrees, thus the sun was about 4 degrees above the horizon. At a solar longitude of 138.9 degrees, the season on Mars is Northern Summer.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, is the prime contractor for the project and built the spacecraft. The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment is operated by the University of Arizona, Tucson, and the instrument was built by Ball Aerospace and Technology Corp., Boulder, Colo. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows a patch of frost-covered, dark sand that, at the time the picture was acquired in June 2005, had begun to defrost. The frost is carbon dioxide. | 2 September 2005This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a patch of frost-covered, dark sand that, at the time the picture was acquired in June 2005, had begun to defrost. The frost is carbon dioxide. Dunes and other patches of sand are usually the first polar features to develop dark spots as the frost begins to sublime away.Location near: 78.9°S, 80.2°W Image width: width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi) Illumination from: upper left Season: Southern Spring | |
This image NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows part of the dune field on the floor of Brashear Crater. | Context imageToday's VIS image shows part of the dune field on the floor of Brashear Crater.Orbit Number: 48153 Latitude: -53.3619 Longitude: 240.455 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2012-10-22 00:28Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This cylindrical image from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity shows the site within an alcove called 'Duck Bay' in the western portion of Victoria Crater taken in April, 2008. | Left-eye view of a color stereo pair for PIA11787Right-eye view of a color stereo pair for PIA11787NASA Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity used its navigation camera to take the images combined into this stereo, full-circle view of the rover's surroundings on the 1,506th through 1,510th Martian days, or sols, of Opportunity's mission on Mars (April 19-23, 2008). North is at the top.This view combines images from the left-eye and right-eye sides of the navigation camera. It appears three-dimensional when viewed through red-blue glasses with the red lens on the left. The site is within an alcove called "Duck Bay" in the western portion of Victoria Crater. Victoria Crater is about 800 meters (half a mile) wide. Opportunity had descended into the crater at the top of Duck Bay 7 months earlier. By the time the rover acquired this view, it had examined rock layers inside the rim.Opportunity was headed for a closer look at the base of a promontory called "Cape Verde," the cliff at about the 2-o'clock position of this image, before leaving Victoria. The face of Cape Verde is about 6 meters (20 feet) tall. Just clockwise from Cape Verde is the main bowl of Victoria Crater, with sand dunes at the bottom. A promontory called "Cabo Frio," at the southern side of Duck Bay, stands near the 6-o'clock position of the image.This view is presented as a cylindrical-perspective projection with geometric seam correction. | |
These streamlined islands are located in Mangala Vallis on Mars as seen by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft. | Context image for PIA08493Streamlined IslandsThese streamlined islands are located in Mangala Vallis.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude -15.2N, Longitude 210.9E. 18 meter/pixel resolution.Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images. Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
The windstreaks in this image of Syrtis Major Planum indicate winds blowing from the northeast. This image is from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft. | Context imageThe windstreaks in this VIS image of Syrtis Major Planum indicate winds blowing from the northeast.Orbit Number: 41980 Latitude: -0.821278 Longitude: 70.4895 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2011-06-01 21:35Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
The THEMIS VIS camera contains 5 filters. The data from different filters can be combined in multiple ways to create a false color image. This false color image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows the margin of the north polar cap. | Context imageThe THEMIS VIS camera contains 5 filters. The data from different filters can be combined in multiple ways to create a false color image. These false color images may reveal subtle variations of the surface not easily identified in a single band image. Today's false color image shows the margin of the north polar cap.Orbit Number: 4211 Latitude: 80.074 Longitude: 43.0149 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2002-11-26 05:54Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
Image captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows the eastern flank of Arsia Mons midway between the summit of the volcano and the surrounding plains. | Context imageThis VIS image shows the eastern flank of Arsia Mons midway between the summit of the volcano and the surrounding plains. Note the small linear fractures which trend towards the top of the image; these fractures encircle the volcano.Orbit Number: 49227 Latitude: -9.4723 Longitude: 241.774 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2013-01-18 09:34 Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This is the highest-resolution view that the MAHLI camera on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity acquired of the top of a rock called 'Bathurst Inlet'; the rock is dark gray and is so fine-grained that MAHLI cannot resolve grains or crystals in it. | This is the highest-resolution view that the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity acquired of the top of a rock called "Bathurst Inlet." The rover's arm held the camera with the lens only about 1.6 inches (4 centimeters) from the rock. The view covers an area roughly 1.3 inches by 1 inch (3.3 centimeters by 2.5 centimeters). At this distance, the camera provides resolution of 21 microns per pixel. For comparison, the typical resolution in images from the Microscopic Imager cameras on earlier-generation Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity is about 31 microns per pixel.This is a merged-focus view combining information from a set of eight images taken by MAHLI at different focus settings during Curiosity's 54th Martian day, or sol (Sept. 30, 2012). A context image of the top of Bathurst Inlet, taken by MAHLI positioned about seven times farther from the rock (see PIA14762). Curiosity also examined Bathurst Inlet on the same sol with the other science instrument at the end of the rover's arm, the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer. The Bathurst Inlet rock is dark gray and appears to be so fine-grained that MAHLI cannot resolve grains or crystals in it. This means that the grains or crystals, if there are any at all, are smaller than about 80 microns in size. Some windblown sand-sized grains or dust aggregates have accumulated on the surface of the rock. MAHLI can do focus merging onboard. The full-frame versions of the eight separate images that were combined into this view were not even returned to Earth -- just the thumbnail versions. Merging the images onboard reduces the volume of data that needs to be downlinked to Earth. JPL manages the Mars Science Laboratory/Curiosity for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The rover was designed, developed and assembled at JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.For more about NASA's Curiosity mission, visit: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/msl, http://www.nasa.gov/mars, and http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/msl. | |
This graph shows readings for atmospheric pressure at the landing site of NASA's Curiosity rover. The data were obtained by Curiosity's Rover Environmental Monitoring Station from Aug. 15 to Aug. 18, 2012. | This graph shows readings for atmospheric pressure at the landing site of NASA's Curiosity rover. The data were obtained by Curiosity's Rover Environmental Monitoring Station from Aug. 15 to Aug. 18, 2012. The fluctuations between about 690 Pascals (6.9 millibars) and 780 Pascals (7.8 millibars) shows that the atmosphere is similar to predicated models. | |
This image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey released on March 30, 2004 shows an area in Elysium Planitia near Isidis Planitia on Mars. The channel formation is surface controlled, while the lava-tube creation is mainly structurally controlled. | Released 30 March 2004The Odyssey spacecraft has completed a full Mars year of observations of the red planet. For the next several weeks the Image of the Day will look back over this first mars year. It will focus on four themes: 1) the poles - with the seasonal changes seen in the retreat and expansion of the caps; 2) craters - with a variety of morphologies relating to impact materials and later alteration, both infilling and exhumation; 3) channels - the clues to liquid surface flow; and 4) volcanic flow features. While some images have helped answer questions about the history of Mars, many have raised new questions that are still being investigated as Odyssey continues collecting data as it orbits Mars.The image shows an area in Elysium Planitia near Isidis Planitia. It was acquired May 17, 2002 during northern spring. The local time is 3:30pm. The image shows channels and collapsed lava-tubes. The channel formation is surface controlled, while the lava-tube creation is mainly structurally controlled.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 21.6, Longitude 125.5 East (234.5 West). 19 meter/pixel resolution.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image taken by NASA's Mars Odyssey shows the region east of Alba Patera on Mars featuring the complex relations that can occur in regions of multiple structural events. There are fractures and graben in this area that intersect at multiple angles. | This VIS image taken in the region east of Alba Patera shows the complex relations that can occur in regions of multiple structural events. There are fractures and graben in this area that intersect at multiple angles.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 43.2, Longitude 269.4 East (90.6 West). 19 meter/pixel resolution.Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows a section of one of the many channel forms found on the northwestern side of the Elysium Mons volcanic complex. The channel features are thought to have both a tectonic and volcanic origin. | Context imageToday's VIS image contains a section of one of the many channel forms found on the northwestern side of the Elysium Mons volcanic complex. The channel features are thought to have both a tectonic and volcanic origin. The linear depression resembles a graben (formed by tectonic forces) and the smaller sinuous channels to the top of the image more closely resemble features caused by fluid flow - either lava or water created by melting subsurface ice by volcanic heating.Orbit Number: 72646 Latitude: 29.3486 Longitude: 140.473 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2018-04-30 21:04Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. | |
This image shows NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's parachute top attached to the backshell bottom on the Mars surface. | This is an enhanced-color image from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera. It shows the Phoenix parachute top attached to the backshell bottom on the Mars surface. In this image, north is down.The blue/green and red filters on the HiRISE camera were used to make this picture. .The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.Photojournal Note: As planned, the Phoenix lander, which landed May 25, 2008 23:53 UTC, ended communications in November 2008, about six months after landing, when its solar panels ceased operating in the dark Martian winter. |
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