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In late November 2005 while descending 'Husband Hill,' NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit took the most detailed panorama so far of the 'Inner Basin,' the rover's next target destination. An abundance of rocks upon red soil is shown in false-color. | In late November 2005 while descending "Husband Hill," NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit took the most detailed panorama so far of the "Inner Basin," the rover's next target destination. Spirit acquired the 405 individual images that make up this 360-degree view of the surrounding terrain using five different filters on the panoramic camera. The rover took the images on Martian days, or sols, 672 to 677 (Nov. 23 to 28, 2005 -- the Thanksgiving holiday weekend).This image is a false-color rendering using camera's 750-, 530-, and 430-nanometer filters, emphasizing some colors more than others to enhance striking but subtle color differences among rocks, soils, hills, and plains."Home Plate," a bright, semi-circular feature scientists hope to investigate, is harder to discern in this image than in earlier views taken from higher up the hill. Spirit acquired this more oblique view, known as the "Seminole panorama," from about halfway down the south flank of Husband Hill, 50 meters (164 feet) or so below the summit. Near the center of the panorama, on the horizon, are "McCool Hill" and "Ramon Hill," named, like Husband Hill, in honor of the fallen astronauts of the space shuttle Columbia. Husband Hill is visible behind the rover, on the right and left sides of the panorama. An arc of rover tracks made while avoiding obstacles and getting into position to examine rock outcrops can be traced over a long distance by zooming in to explore the panorama in greater detail.Spirit is now significantly farther downhill toward the center of this panorama, en route to Home Plate and other enigmatic soils and outcrop rocks in the quest to uncover the history of Gusev Crater and the "Columbia Hills." | |
This image shows the orientation and magnitude of the magnetic field measured by the magnetometer onboard NASA's Mars Global Surveyor as the spacecraft sped over the surface of Mars during an early aerobraking pass. | This image shows the orientation and magnitude of the magnetic field measured by the MGS magnetometer as it sped over the surface of Mars during an early aerobraking pass (Day of the year, 264; "P6" periapsis pass). At each point along the spacecraft trajectory we've drawn vectors in the direction of the magnetic field measured at that instant; the length of the line is scaled to show the relative magnitude of the field. Imagine traveling along with the MGS spacecraft, holding a string with a magnetized needle on one end: this essentially a compass with a needle that is free to spin in all directions. As you pass over the surface the needle would swing rapidly, first pointing towards the planet and then rotating quickly towards "up" and back down again. All in a relatively short span of time, say a minute or two, during which time the spacecraft has traveled a couple of hundred miles. You've just passed over one of many "magnetic anomalies" thus far detected near the surface of Mars. A second major anomaly appears a little later along the spacecraft track, about 1/4 the magnitude of the first - can you find it? The short scale length of the magnetic field signature locates the source near the surface of Mars, perhaps in the crust, a 10 to 75 kilometer thick outer shell of the planet (radius 3397 km).The Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Mars Surveyor Operations Project operates the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft with its industrial partner, Lockheed Martin Astronautics, from facilities in Pasadena, CA and Denver, CO. JPL is an operating division of California Institute of Technology (Caltech). | |
The THEMIS camera contains 5 filters. Data from different filters can be combined in many ways to create a false color image. This image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows dunes on the floor of an unnamed crater in Noachis Terra. | 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 dunes on the floor of an unnamed crater in Noachis Terra.Orbit Number: 58960 Latitude: -48.9257 Longitude: 33.7526 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2015-03-30 11:31Please 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 anaglyph, acquired by NASA's Phoenix Lander on Jun. 19, 2008, shows a stereoscopic 3D view of the Martian surface near the lander. 3D glasses are necessary to view this image. | This anaglyph, acquired by NASA's Phoenix Lander's Surface Stereo Imager on Sol 25, the 25th Martian day of the mission (June 19, 2008), shows a stereoscopic 3D view of the Martian surface near the lander. The trench shown here is informally called "Snow White." The hole to the left of the trench, seen in the center of the image, is informally called "Burned Alive."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 acquired on January 10, 2019 by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, shows large gullies on both the pole- and equator-facing slopes. | Map Projected Browse ImageClick on image for larger versionMost gullies in the southern mid-latitudes are on south-facing slopes, which are the coldest and have the most frost in the winter. However, some occur on other slopes. This image shows large gullies on both the pole- and equator-facing slopes. An important puzzle in Mars science is whether or not all of these gullies form in the same geologic eras and by the same processes. If you have red/green glasses, be sure to check out the anaglyph of this crater, which shows rugged topography!The map is projected here at a scale of 25 centimeters (9.8 inches) per pixel. (The original image scale is 26.7 centimeters [10.5 inches] per pixel [with 1 x 1 binning]; objects on the order of 80 centimeters [31.5 inches] across are resolved.) North is up.This is a stereo pair with ESP_057700_1415.The University of Arizona, in Tucson, operates HiRISE, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., in 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. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows dark-toned sand dunes on the floor of Russell Crater in south-central, Noachis Terra on Mars. | 26 April 2006This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows dark-toned sand dunes on the floor of Russell Crater in south-central, Noachis Terra. A dune at the right (east) edge of the image is host to several small gullies whose channels extend predominantly to the west-southwest. The formation of these features is not well-understood, but they might result from a combination of downslope movement of sand and a lubricating agent, perhaps carbon dioxide gas or water that had been trapped in the dune as ice. The randomly-oriented dark streaks seen on the dunes and on the interdune surfaces were created by the passage of spring and summertime dust devils.Location near: 54.7°S, 347.4°W Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi) Illumination from: upper left Season: Southern Summer | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows | MGS MOC Release No. MOC2-563, 3 December 2003The upper crust of Mars is layered, and interbedded with these layers are old, filled and buried meteor impact craters. In a few places on Mars, such as Arabia Terra, erosion has re-exposed some of the filled and buried craters. This October 2003 Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows an example. The larger circular feature was once a meteor crater. It was filled with sediment, then buried beneath younger rocks. The smaller circular feature is a younger impact crater that formed in the surface above the rocks that buried the large crater. Later, erosion removed all of the material that covered the larger, buried crater, except in the location of the small crater. This pair of martian landforms is located near 17.6°N, 312.8°W. The image covers an area 3 km (1.9 mi) wide and is illuminated from the lower left. | |
A depression called 'Scamander Crater,' dominates the terrain near NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit in this map that emphasizes local topography by removing the regional tilt to the northwest. | Click on image for larger annotated imageA depression called "Scamander Crater," about 8 meters (26 feet) wide and 25 centimeters (10 inches) deep, dominates the terrain near NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit in this map that emphasizes local topography by removing the regional tilt to the northwest. The total relief indicated by the color differences is about half a meter (20 inches) from the higher ground (color coded red) to the lower ground (color coded black). The map covers an area 12 meters (39 feet) wide from west to east. North is to the top.The topographic information was generated from stereo image data using exposures taken by Spirit's navigation camera during the 1,870th Martian day, or sol, of the rover's mission on Mars (April 7, 2009). At that time, Spirit had not yet reached the rover location indicated on the map. The indicated position is at a site called "Troy," where Spirit became embedded by the end of April and remained for more than six months. From its embedded position, the rover used its robotic arm to examine the patch of bright soil it had exposed, called "Ulysses."The map indicates that Spirit is situated with its left wheels within the crater and right wheels outside the crater. Rover-team scientists hypothesize that the left wheels broke through a thin, sulfate-rich crust and encountered underlying loose sulfate sands that fill the crater. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows linear depressions created by fault action. These features are located on the western margin of the Elysium Volcanic Complex. | Context image for PIA10325Elysium FossaeThe linear depressions in this VIS image were created by fault action. These features are located on the western margin of the Elysium Volcanic Complex.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 26.2N, Longitude 136.6E. 19 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. | |
Spirit's View on Sol 147 (Vertical) | This 360-degree view of the terrain surrounding NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit on the 147th martian day of the rover's mission inside Gusev Crater, on June 1, 2004, was assembled from images taken by Spirit's navigation camera. The rover's position is Site A60. The view is presented in a vertical projection with geometrical seam correction. | |
This anaglyph, acquired by NASA's Phoenix Lander on Jun. 10, 2008, shows a large rock called 'Winkies.' 3D glasses are necessary to view this image. | This anaglyph, acquired by NASA's Phoenix Lander's Surface Stereo Imager on Sol 16, the 16th Martian day of the mission (June 10, 2008), shows a stereoscopic 3D view of the Martian surface near the lander. The large rock seen near the top center of the image is informally called "Winkies" and the rock below it is informally called "Quadlings." 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. | |
These craters on Tharsis are first visible as new dark spots observed by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's Context Camera (CTX), which can view much larger areas, and then imaged by HiRISE for a close-up look. | The South Polar Layered Deposits of Mars are a thick stack of layers of ice and dust, deposited over millions of years. The rate of deposition changes over time, and in some times and places the stack is eroded.Here, a low mesa or ring of hills occurs near the edge of the layered deposits. It is likely that this feature was once an impact crater. The floor of the crater became resistant, and was left behind as the rest of the surface eroded.Images like this one can show us where the layered deposits are being eroded, and how much ice and dust has been lost. This, in turn, helps us understand the history recorded in the layers.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. | |
The channel-like features in this image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft are tectonic graben. The graben (called Icaria Fossae) are located in Terra Sirenum. | Context image The channel-like features in this VIS image are tectonic graben. The graben (called Icaria Fossae) are located in Terra Sirenum.Orbit Number: 65846 Latitude: -41.5696 Longitude: 240.567 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2016-10-17 14:57Please 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 part of Huo Hsing Vallis, located on the northern margin of Terra Sabaea. | Context imageThis VIS image shows part of Huo Hsing Vallis, located on the northern margin of Terra Sabaea. Numerous channels are located in this region, draining the highland as the elevation drops down into Utopia Planitia.Orbit Number: 63307 Latitude: 30.3507 Longitude: 66.5621 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2016-03-22 11:58Please 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 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows an unusual surface texture. The circular depressions look like swiss cheese. | Context imageToday's polar image shows an unusual surface texture. The circular depressions look like swiss cheese.Orbit Number: 56475 Latitude: -86.65 Longitude: 355.117 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2014-09-06 21:13Please 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 shows the floor of an unnamed crater east of Proctor Crater containing two types of dunes. To the north are coalescing small individual dunes, to the south a large linear dune that is becoming a sand sheet. | Context image for PIA09292Dune TypesThe floor of this unnamed crater east of Proctor Crater contains two types of dunes. To the north are coalescing small individual dunes. At the southern end of the group of small dunes there is a large linear dune that is becoming a sand sheet.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude -48.6N, Longitude 39.0E. 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, part of an images as art series from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey released on March 3, 2004 shows a martian landscape resembling a toucan's beak. | Released 3 March 2004Humanity is a very visual species. We rely on our eyes to tell us what is going on in the world around us. Put any image in front of a person and that person will examine the picture looking for anything familiar. Even if the examiner has no idea what he/she is looking at in a picture, he/she will still be able to make a statement about the picture, usually preceded by the words "it looks like..." The image above is part of the surface of Mars, but is presented for its artistic value rather than its scientific value. When first viewed, this image solicited a statement that "it looks like..." something seen in everyday life. Perhaps a toucan's beak?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 false-color panorama from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit taken in Sept, 2005 shows a field of view covered in rocks as the rover explored Gusev Crater on Mars. | Spirit took this panorama of images, covering a field of view just under 180 degrees from left to right, with the panoramic camera on Martian days (sols) 594, 595, and 597 (Sept. 4, 5, and 7, 2005) of its exploration of Gusev Crater on Mars. This is a false-color rendering generated using the camera's 750-nanometer, 530-nanometer, and 430-nanometer filters. | |
NASA's Curiosity Mars rover captured this view of a sulfate-bearing region using its Mastcam on May 2, 2022. Dark boulders seen near the center are thought to have formed from sand deposited in ancient streams or ponds. | NASA's Curiosity Mars rover captured this view of a sulfate-bearing region ahead of its current location. Dark boulders near the center of the panorama are thought to have formed from sand deposited in ancient streams or ponds. Scattered gray rocks covering the hillside on the right are all that remain of a sandstone capping unit that once covered this area. This panorama is made up of 10 individual images that were captured by Curiosity's Mast Camera, or Mastcam, on May 2, 2022, the 3,462nd Martian day, or sol, of the mission. The images were stitched together after they were sent back to Earth.Behind the dark boulders – in the middle of the image – is a mountain that makes up part of the sulfate-bearing region; layers within this region can be seen as stripes across the mountainside. These layers represent an excellent record of how Mars' water and climate changed over time.Curiosity was built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, which leads the mission on behalf of NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego built and operates Mastcam.For more about Curiosity, visit http://mars.nasa.gov/msl or https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/msl/index.html. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows the Acidalia/Mare Erythraeum face of Mars in mid-November 2005. | 8 November 2005This picture is a composite of Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) daily global images acquired at Ls 324° during a previous Mars year. This month, Mars looks similar, as Ls 324° occurs in mid-November 2005. The picture shows the Acidalia/Mare Erythraeum face of Mars. Over the course of the month, additional faces of Mars as it appears at this time of year are being posted for MOC Picture of the Day. Ls, solar longitude, is a measure of the time of year on Mars. Mars travels 360° around the Sun in 1 Mars year. The year begins at Ls 0°, the start of northern spring and southern autumn.Season: Northern Winter/Southern Summer | |
Fine Layered Deposits Near Capri Mensa | Light-toned layered deposits are found at many sites within Valles Marineris. This HiRISE image shows an outcrop near Capri Mensa, in the eastern part of the canyon system. Fine layers are exposed across much of the image. These could have been produced by aqueous or eolian (wind-derived) sedimentation, or they could be volcanic deposits. A dark mantle, shaped into ripples by the wind, covers the layers between outcrops. In some places, especially near the summit of the rise at top center, the layers have broken into angular fragments, showing that the material has been consolidated into rock. Elsewhere, layers appear to form regular steps, indicating that they were deposited by some repeated process. The detail shown by HiRISE provides important information for understanding how these deposits formed. Image PSP_001376_1675 was taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera onboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft on November 11, 2006. The complete image is centered at -12.3 degrees latitude, 314.0 degrees East longitude. The range to the target site was 259.9 km (162.5 miles). At this distance the image scale is 26.0 cm/pixel (with 1 x 1 binning) so objects ~78 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 3:34 PM and the scene is illuminated from the west with a solar incidence angle of 61 degrees, thus the sun was about 29 degrees above the horizon. At a solar longitude of 133.9 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. | |
This stereo view shows fractured mounds on the southern edge of Elysium Planitia on Mars. It combines two images from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. 3D glasses are necessary to view this image. | This stereo view shows fractured mounds on the southern edge of Elysium Planitia on Mars. It combines two images taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. When seen through red-blue glasses, the view appears three dimensional.This is one example of 362 stereo views posted by the HiRISE team on Dec. 8, 2008, at http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/anaglyphs. This view spans an area about 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) wide.The mounds on the southern edge of Elysium Planitia are typically a few kilometers or miles in diameter and about 60 meters (200 feet) tall. Fractures that crisscross their surfaces are dilational (extensional) in nature, suggesting that the mounds formed by localized uplift (i.e., they were pushed up from below). The three-dimensional perspective shows that the uplift is not uniform along a fracture and can favor one side.The mounds are probably composed of solidified lava. They are contiguous with, and texturally similar to, flood lavas that blanket much of Elysium Planitia. Where dilation cracks provide cross-sectional exposure, the uplifted material is rocky.Patches of mechanically weak and disrupted material overlie the rocky mound material. This is particularly conspicuous in the northeast corner of the image. These patches may be remnants of a layer that was once more continuous but has been extensively eroded. Smooth lava plains fill the low-lying areas between the mounds. They are riddled with sinuous pressure ridges. The entire area is covered by a relatively thin layer of dust and sand.One of the HiRISE images used in this stereo view is catalogued as PSP_003597_1765, taken May 3, 2007, and as PSP_002542_1765, taken Feb. 10, 2007. The location is about 3 degrees south latitude, 168 degrees east longitude.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 & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo. | |
One type of surface seen on Mars' south pole is this 'swiss-cheese' terrain of circular depressions as seen in this image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft. | Context imageOne type of surface seen on the south pole is this "swiss-cheese" terrain of circular depressions.Orbit Number: 47934 Latitude: -86.7335 Longitude: 354.678 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2012-10-04 00:05Please 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 captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows a landslide deposit which flowed towards the floor of Ganges Chasma. | Context imageToday's VIS image shows a landslide deposit which flowed towards the floor of Ganges Chasma.Orbit Number: 49187 Latitude: -7.12336 Longitude: 315.372 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2013-01-15 02:33Please 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 dunes in and around a crater located on the floor of the much larger Herschel Crater as seen by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft. | Context imageThis VIS image shows dunes in and around a crater located on the floor of the much larger Herschel Crater.Orbit Number: 51566 Latitude: -14.3607 Longitude: 128.67 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2013-07-29 21:05Please 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 captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft illustrates the complex surface of the polar cap, featuring not just different surface textures, but ridges and valleys as well. | Context imageThis VIS image illustrates the complex surface of the polar cap, featuring not just different surface textures, but ridges and valleys as well.Orbit Number: 56812 Latitude: -85.7237 Longitude: 302.899 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2014-10-04 15:08Please 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 section of Mamers Valles. The channel is nearly 1000 km long (600 miles). | Context imageToday's VIS image shows a section of Mamers Valles. The channel is nearly 1000 km long (600 miles). Mamers Valles originates near Cerulli Crater in northern Arabia Terra, and after a short section near the crater where flow is to the south, flows northward to empty in Deuteronilus Mensae. The steep walls of Mamers Valles can reach heights of 1200 m (4000 feet).Orbit Number: 81571 Latitude: 32.8216 Longitude: 17.9954 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2020-05-04 21:07Please 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 from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows part of Atlantis Chaos. Chaos terrain is typified by regions of blocky, often steep sided, mesas interspersed with deep valleys. | 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 part of Atlantis Chaos. Chaos terrain is typified by regions of blocky, often steep sided, mesas interspersed with deep valleys. With time and erosion the valleys widen and the mesas become smaller. The mesas in this image appear brighter than the surrounding lowlands, likely due to relatively less dust cover. Atlantis Chaos is located in Terra Sirenum.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: 83918 Latitude: -34.6847 Longitude: 183.217 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2020-11-14 02:09Please 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. | |
Small spherical objects fill the field in this mosaic combining four images from the Microscopic Imager on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity at an outcrop called 'Kirkwood' in the Cape York segment of the western rim of Endeavour Crater. | Small spherical objects fill the field in this mosaic combining four images from the Microscopic Imager on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity. The view covers an area about 2.4 inches (6 centimeters) across, at an outcrop called "Kirkwood" in the Cape York segment of the western rim of Endeavour Crater. The individual spherules are up to about one-eighth inch (3 millimeters) in diameter.The Microscopic Imager took the component images during the 3,064th Martian day, or sol, of Opportunity's work on Mars (Sept. 6, 2012). For a color view of the Kirkwood outcrop as Opportunity was approaching it two weeks earlier, see PIA16128.Opportunity discovered spherules at its landing site more than eight-and-a-half years earlier. Those spherules were nicknamed "blueberries." They provided important evidence about long-ago wet environmental conditions on Mars because researchers using Opportunity's science instruments identified them as concretions rich in the mineral hematite deposited by water saturating the bedrock. A picture of the "blueberries" from the same Microscopic Imager is PIA05564.The spherules at Kirkwood do not have the iron-rich composition of the blueberries. They also differ in concentration, distribution and structure. Some of the spherules in this image have been partially eroded away, revealing concentric internal structure. Opportunity's science team plans to use the rover for further investigation of these spherules to determine what evidence they can provide about ancient Martian environmental conditions.NASA launched the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity in the summer of 2003, and both completed their three-month prime missions in April 2004. They continued bonus, extended missions for years. Spirit finished communicating with Earth in March 2010. The rovers have made important discoveries about wet environments on ancient Mars that may have been favorable for supporting microbial life. JPL manages the Mars Exploration Rover Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows an unnamed channel located on the margin of Elysium Planitia and the Elysium volcanic complex. | Context imageThis unnamed channel is located on the margin of Elysium Planitia and the Elysium volcanic complex.Orbit Number: 39281 Latitude: 12.5683 Longitude: 145.815 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2010-10-22 17:55Please 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. | |
This image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows streamlined islands within part of Kasei Valles. | Context imageThis VIS image shows streamlined islands within part of Kasei Valles.Orbit Number: 53695 Latitude: 28.1915 Longitude: 290.972 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2014-01-21 03:21Please 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 image was taken at 51 minutes past midnight local solar time on Aug. 25, 2008 during the slow sunrise that followed a 75 minute 'night.' The skylight in the image is light scattered off atmospheric dust particles and ice crystals. | From the location of NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander, above the Martian arctic circle, the sun does not set during the peak of the Martian summer.This period of maximum solar energy is past—on Sol 86, the 86th Martian day after the Phoenix landing, the sun fully set behind a slight rise to the north for about half an hour.This red-filter image taken by the lander's Surface Stereo Imager, shows the sun rising on the morning of sol 90, Aug. 25, 2008, the last day of the Phoenix nominal mission.The image was taken at 51 minutes past midnight local solar time during the slow sunrise that followed a 75 minute "night." The skylight in the image is light scattered off atmospheric dust particles and ice crystals.The setting sun does not mean the end of the mission. In late July, the Phoenix Mission was extended through September, rather than the 90-sol duration originally planned as the prime mission.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 part of Ophir Chasma. Ophir Chasma is part of Valles Marineris, the largest canyon system on Mars. | Context imageThis 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: 79116 Latitude: -3.66498 Longitude: 288.151 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2019-10-15 17:28Please 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 image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows two small tributaries, just east of where they join Shalbatana Vallis. | Context imageThis VIS image shows two small tributaries, just east of where they join Shalbatana Vallis.Orbit Number: 43593 Latitude: 2.71399 Longitude: 316.959 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2011-10-12 18:23Please 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. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows ice rich clouds over the summit of Arsia Mons. | 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.The 5 filters are collected with a short delay between them. In creating false color images of the surface, the surface is stable and each filter image is overlaid and "connected" based of the location of identical surface features. However, when there is movement occurring during the delay, the filters don't overlay well.In this case the movement is seen as bands of blue and yellow. These are ice rich clouds over the summit of Arsia Mons. The altitude of the clouds and speed they are blown by the wind is enough that there is significant difference in cloud locations between the short delay separating the filters. Imaging transient clouds allows for study of the atmosphere of Mars.Orbit Number: 60706 Latitude: -9.2731 Longitude: 239.942 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2015-08-21 06:46Please 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 Global Surveyor shows dark sand dunes, with a thin coating of autumn frost, in the Ogygis Regio west of Argyre basin. | 14 September 2006This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows dark sand dunes, with a thin coating of autumn frost, in the Ogygis Regio west of Argyre basin. The steepest slopes on the dunes, their slip faces, point toward the north-northeast (upper right), indicating that the dominant winds in the region blow from the south-southwest (lower left).Location near: 50.4°S, 66.6°W Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi) Illumination from: upper left Season: Southern Autumn | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows eroded, exposed layered materials in the south polar region of Mars. | 10 December 2005This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows eroded, exposed layered materials in the south polar region of Mars. Since Mariner 9 in 1972, the polar layered materials have been assumed to be geologically recent accumulations of dust and ice, but MOC images provide no clear evidence that the materials are particularly young or composed of a specific suite of materials. They might as easily be composed of ancient, sedimentary rock.Location near: 80.6°S, 230.1°W Image width: width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi)Illumination from: upper left Season: Southern Summer | |
Impediment to Spirit Drive on Sol 1806 | The hazard avoidance camera on the front of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit took this image after a drive by Spirit on the 1,806th Martian day, or sol, (January 31, 2009) of Spirit's mission on the surface of Mars. The wheel at the bottom right of the image is Spirit's right-front wheel. Because that wheel no longer turns, Spirit drives backwards dragging that wheel. The drive on Sol 1806 covered about 30 centimeters (1 foot). The rover team had planned a longer drive, but Spirit stopped short, apparently from the right front wheel encountering the partially buried rock visible next to that wheel.The hazard avoidance cameras on the front and back of the rover provide wide-angle views. The hill on the horizon in the right half of this image is Husband Hill. Spirit reached the summit of Husband Hill in 2005. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows a small portion of the immense lava plains of Daedalia Planum. These flows originated from Arsia Mons, one of the three large Tharsis volcanoes. | Context imageToday's VIS image shows a small portion of the immense lava plains of Daedalia Planum. These flows originated from Arsia Mons, one of the three large Tharsis volcanoes.Orbit Number: 75238 Latitude: -19.446 Longitude: 221.612 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2018-11-30 08:56Please 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. | |
This map shows a color-coded interpretation of geomorphic units -- categories based on surface textures and contour -- in the region where NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has studied an arctic Martian plain. | This map shows a color-coded interpretation of geomorphic units—categories based on surface textures and contours—in the region where NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has studied an arctic Martian plain. It covers an area about 65 kilometers by 65 kilometers (40 miles by 40 miles).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. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows the summit region of Olympus Mons on Mars including surfaces mantled by fine dust and pocked by small impact craters, and no surfaces exhibit fresh, dark lava flows. Olympus Mons is not an active volcano. | Click figure for larger view of context image.Olympus Mons is one of the largest volcanoes known. It is roughly the height of 3 Mount Everests and is nearly 550 km (340 miles) across. Despite its great height, the slopes of this volcano are only a few degrees--a person would not really climb Olympus Mons, but simply walk uphill toward its summit. Once reaching the summit, however, one would peer across and down into the large complex of nested craters--or calderae--formed by collapse after eruptions ceased and magma withdrew deep beneath the volcano. Similar sights--though smaller--can be seen by visiting the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the Island of Hawai'i. Descriptions and photographs of the Hawaiian volcanoes that are very much like Olympus Mons can be found at the site of the U. S. Geological Survey's Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.Olympus Mons is not an active volcano. The MOC image shows that the summit region includes surfaces mantled by fine dust and pocked by small impact craters, and no surfaces exhibit fresh, dark lava flows like those seen near active volcanoes such as those in Hawai'i. The context image of Olympus Mons (above right) is a mosaic of Viking orbiter views obtained in the late 1970s. The white box crossing the summit craters (just right of center in the context image) shows the location of the high resolution MGS MOC view. The MOC high resolution image covers a strip across the summit region that is 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) wide by 91 kilometers (57 miles) long. Sunlight illuminates the MOC image from the lower left. Boulders can be seen in some of the troughs cut into the floor of the summit calderae in the 8 meter and 6 meter per pixel views; lava flows are visible in the northern portion of the image. | |
The predominant feature in this image from NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft is a large flooded crater. Are the flows lava or mud? Scientists don't agree. | Released 30 April 2003The predominant feature in this THEMIS image is a large flooded crater. Are the flows lava or mud? Scientists don't agree. Once again Mars has one up on us Earthbound humans!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.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 26.9, Longitude 191.1 East (168.9 West). 19 meter/pixel resolution. | |
The channel-like features in image captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft are fracture sets related to the formation of Iani Chaos, which occurs directly north of the image. | Context imageThe channel-like features in today's image are fracture sets related to the formation of Iani Chaos, which occurs directly north of the image.Orbit Number: 45553 Latitude: -3.81366 Longitude: 344.512 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2012-03-22 00:14Please 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 defrosting north polar sand dunes on Mars. | 11 June 2004These four Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) images show north polar sand dunes as they appeared on four different days over the past ten weeks. In summer, the dunes would be darker than the substrate on which they occur. However, it is currently spring in the northern hemisphere, and the dunes are still covered with frost from the previous winter. The MGS MOC has been busy over the past several months, documenting the changes in frost patterns that occur on dunes and interdune substrates all over the north polar region. The site shown here was imaged on 30 March, 23 April, 16 May, and 9 June 2004. The bright frost that covers the dunes progressively changes from one image to the next, as dark spots develop and frost sublimes away. This defrosting dune monitor site is located near 80.0°N, 237.5°W. Each strip is about 1.1 km (0.7 mi) wide and illuminated by sunlight from the lower left. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows a ring marking the location of a nearly-filled, nearly-buried impact crater on the martian northern plains on Mars. Remnants of bright, seasonal frost occur in some polygonal cracks on the plain. | 18 August 2006This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a ring marking the location of a nearly-filled, nearly-buried impact crater on the martian northern plains. Remnants of bright, seasonal frost occur in some polygonal cracks on the plain.Location near: 62.9°N, 96.0°W Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi) Illumination from: lower left Season: Northern Spring | |
The texture/pattern on the floor of this unnamed crater in Terra Sabaea indicates that volitiles make up a portion of the material filling the crater on Mars as seen by NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft. | Context image for PIA09047Crater FloorThe texture/pattern on the floor of this unnamed crater in Terra Sabaea indicates that volitiles make up a portion of the material filling the crater.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 33.8N, Longitude 44.4E. 19 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 shows the floor of an unnamed crater in Utopia Planitia with the typical pattern of northern craters, a pattern that suggests volatiles are part of the material filling the crater. | Context image for PIA11316DunesThe floor of this unnamed crater in Utopia Planitia has the typical pattern of northern craters, a pattern that suggests volatiles are part of the material filling the crater. In this crater, sand dunes are also located on the crater floor.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 45.3N, Longitude 69.9E. 19 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 wheel tracks seen above and to the left of the lander trace the path NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has traveled since landing in a small crater at Meridiani Planum, Mars. | The wheel tracks seen above and to the left of the lander trace the path the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has traveled since landing in a small crater at Meridiani Planum, Mars. After this picture was taken, the rover excavated a trench near the soil seen at the lower left corner of the image. This image mosaic was taken by the rover's navigation camera. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows a frost-covered slope in the south polar region of Mars. The layered nature of the terrain in the south polar region is evident in a series of irregular, somewhat stair-stepped bands. | 28 August 2005This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a frost-covered slope in the south polar region of Mars. The layered nature of the terrain in the south polar region is evident in a series of irregular, somewhat stair-stepped bands that run across the image.Location near: 84.3°S, 27.2°W Image width: width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi) Illumination from: upper left Season: Southern Spring | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows an inverted channel running down, through a valley in the Memnonia Sulci region of Mars. The original channel is gone, as are the rocks through which it cut. | This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows an inverted channel running down, through a valley in the Memnonia Sulci region of Mars. The original channel is gone, as are the rocks through which it cut. The channel floor and/or the material that filled the channel was more resistant to erosion, and thus left standing high as a ridge. Inverted channels and valleys are common on Mars. Many old valley networks have been filled, buried, and in some cases, exhumed and inverted, all across the planet.Location near: 11.4°S, 174.4°W Image width: ~3.0 km (~1.9 mi) Illumination from: upper left Season: Southern Winter | |
The floor of this crater in Terra Sirenum contains layered material. The layered sedimentary material on Mars is arguably the most interesting and compelling material on the planet in this image captured by NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft in October 2003. | Released 13 October 2003The floor of this crater in Terra Sirenum contains layered material. The layered sedimentary material on Mars is arguably the most interesting and compelling material on the planet. These layers most likely contain the answers to fundamental questions about Martian geology, climate, and possibly even biology.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude -34.1, Longitude 190.4 East (169.6 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 of a moderately small impact crater on Mars was taken by the Mars Global Surveyor Orbiter Camera (MOC) on October 17, 1997. Long, linear features of different brightness values are seen on the steep slopes inside and outside the crater. | This high resolution picture of a moderately small impact crater on Mars was taken by the Mars Global Surveyor Orbiter Camera (MOC) on October 17, 1997 at 4:11:07 PM PST, during MGS orbit 22. The image covers an area 2.9 by 48.4 kilometers (1.8 by 30 miles) at 9.6 m (31.5 feet) per picture element, and is centered at 21.3 degrees N, 179.8 degrees W, near Orcus Patera. The MOC image is a factor of 15X better than pervious Viking views of this particular crater.The unnamed crater is one of three closely adjacent impact features that display the ejecta pattern characteristic of one type of "flow-ejecta" crater. Such patterns are considered evidence of fluidized movement of the materials ejected during the cratering event, and are believed to indicate the presence of subsurface ice or liquid water.Long, linear features of different brightness values can be seen on the on the steep slopes inside and outside the crater rim. This type of feature, first identified in Viking Orbiter images acquired over 20 years ago, are more clearly seen in this new [sic] view (about 3 times better than the best previous observations). Their most likely explanation is that small land or dirt slides, initiated by seismic or wind action, have flowed down the steep slopes. Initially dark because of the nature of the surface disturbance, these features get lighter with time as the ubiquitous fine, bright dust settles onto them from the martian atmosphere. Based on estimates of the dust fall-out rate, many of these features are probably only a few tens to hundreds of years old. Thus, they are evidence of a process that is active on Mars today.Malin Space Science Systems (MSSS) and the California Institute of Technology built the MOC using spare hardware from the Mars Observer mission. MSSS operates the camera from its facilities in San Diego, CA. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Mars Surveyor Operations Project operates the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft with its industrial partner, Lockheed Martin Astronautics, from facilities in Pasadena, CA and Denver, CO. | |
This image taken by the Surface Stereo Imager on Sol 49, or the 49th Martian day of the mission (July 14, 2008), shows thermal and electrical conductivity probe on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's Robotic Arm. | This image taken by the Surface Stereo Imager on Sol 49, or the 49th Martian day of the mission (July 14, 2008), shows thermal and electrical conductivity probe on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's Robotic Arm.The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is led 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 vertical-projection mosaic was created from navigation camera images that NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit acquired on sol 101 (April 15, 2004). It reveals Spirit's view just before a stopping-point dubbed 'Missoula Crater.' | This vertical-projection mosaic was created from navigation camera images that NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit acquired on sol 101 (April 15, 2004). It reveals Spirit's view just before a stopping-point dubbed "Missoula Crater." The rover is on its way to the "Columbia Hills." | |
NASA's Curiosity rover and its parachute were spotted by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter as Curiosity descended to the surface on Aug. 5 PDT (Aug. 6 EDT). Curiosity and its parachute are in the small white box at center. | NASA's Curiosity rover and its parachute were spotted by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter as Curiosity descended to the surface on Aug. 5 PDT (Aug. 6 EDT). The High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera captured this image of Curiosity while the orbiter was listening to transmissions from the rover. Curiosity and its parachute are in the small white box at center. The rover is descending toward the etched plains just north of the sand dunes that fringe "Mt. Sharp." From the perspective of the orbiter, the parachute and Curiosity are flying at an angle relative to the surface, so the landing site does not appear directly below the rover.The parachute appears fully inflated and performing perfectly. Details in the parachute, such as the band gap at the edges and the central hole, are clearly seen. The cords connecting the parachute to the back shell cannot be seen, although they were seen in the image of NASA's Phoenix lander descending, perhaps due to the difference in lighting angles. The bright spot on the back shell containing Curiosity might be a specular reflection off of a shiny area. Curiosity was released from the back shell sometime after this image was acquired. This view is from an observation made by HiRISE targeted to the expected location of Curiosity about one minute prior to landing. It was captured in HiRISE CCD RED1, near the eastern edge of the swath width (there is a RED0 at the very edge). This means that the rover was a bit further east or downrange than predicted. The image scale is 13.2 inches (33.6 centimeters) per pixel. Other image products from the same observation are, or will be, at http://uahirise.org/releases/msl-descent.php.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 NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, built the spacecraft. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows mesas and other eroded landforms in eastern Arabia Terra, near Huo Hsing Vallis on Mars. Arabia Terra is generally a cratered terrain that has been severely eroded. | 30 October 2005This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows mesas and other eroded landforms in eastern Arabia Terra, near Huo Hsing Vallis. Arabia Terra is generally a cratered terrain that has been severely eroded, although the causes of the erosion -- and where all the material went when it was removed -- are not known.Location near: 27.3°N, 293.2°W Image width: width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi) Illumination from: lower left Season: Northern Summer | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows Morava Valles, located in Margaritifer Terra. It is one of several channels that empty northward towards Chryse Planitia. | Context imageLocated in Margaritifer Terra, Morava Valles is one of several channels that empty northward towards Chryse Planitia. Chaos terrain is typified by regions of blocky, often steep sided, mesas interspersed with deep valleys. With time and erosion the valleys widen and the mesas become smaller. It has been proposed that a catastrophic outflow of subsurface water creates the chaos and provides the surface flow creating the channel. Morava Valles arises from a region of chaos. Chaos terrain is also found along the course of the channel and may occur when the channel flow fluid warms the subsurface ice creating additional release points for melted subsurface ice. This VIS image shows a region of chaos near the terminal end of Morava Valles.Orbit Number: 78166 Latitude: -11.1105 Longitude: 337.845 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2019-07-29 11:58Please 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 left eye of the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity took this image of the camera on the rover's arm, the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), during the 30th Martian day, or sol, of the rover's mission on Mars (Sept. 5, 2012). | The left eye of the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity took this image of the camera on the rover's arm, the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), during the 30th Martian day, or sol, of the rover's mission on Mars (Sept. 5, 2012). MAHLI is one of the tools on a turret at the end of the rover's robotic arm. When this image was taken, the arm had raised the turret to about the same height as the camera on the mast. The Mastcam's left eye has a 34-millimeter focal length lens.The image shows that MAHLI has a thin film or coating of Martian dust on it. This dust accumulated during Curiosity's final descent to the Martian surface, as the Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft's descent stage (or sky crane) engines were disrupting the surface nearby. Effects of the dust were seen in the first image taken of Mars by MAHLI, on the day after landing (PIA15691). The MAHLI lens is protected from dust accumulation by a transparent dust cover. If the dust cover were clean, the images would appear as clear as if the cover were open.The reddish circle near the center of the Mastcam Sol 30 image is the window of MAHLI's dust cover, with a diameter a little less than a soda can's diameter. Inside the lens, each of the nine glass lens elements and the front sapphire window are bonded or cemented in place by a red-colored silicone RTV (room temperature vulcanizing) material. This is a space-qualified "glue" that holds the lens elements in place. When the MAHLI is viewed from certain angles, this material gives one the impression that the inside of the lens is red.The mechanism at the right in this image is Curiosity's dust removal tool, a motorized wire brush. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows trough formed of coalesced collapse pits in the Tractus Catena region of northern Tharsis, Mars. | 4 December 2005This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a trough formed of coalesced collapse pits in the Tractus Catena region of northern Tharsis, Mars.Location near: 54.8°S, 0.7°W Image width: width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi)Illumination from: upper left Season: Southern Summer | |
This image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey released on April 1, 2004 shows a channel near the martian feature called Alba Patera on Mars. The image shows multiple possibly liquid formed channels. | Released 1 April 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 channel shown on the image is near the feature called Alba Patera. It was collected August 22, 2002 during northern spring season. The local time is 4:30pm. The image shows multiple possibly liquid formed channels.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 43.7, Longitude 241.5 East (118.5 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 from NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows vertical features that look like long puffy streamers on Mars which are actually clouds at the margin of a large dust storm. | Context image for PIA09290Cloud StreamersThe vertical features that look like long puffy streamers in this image are actually the clouds at the margin of a large dust storm.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude -62.5N, Longitude 70.9E. 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 captured by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows two craters in Terra Cimmeria. | Context image This VIS image shows two craters in Terra Cimmeria. The inner crater impacted at some time after the outer crater was created. The rim of the smaller, interior crater has several gullies on the south facing side.Orbit Number: 65039 Latitude: -40.5002 Longitude: 132.389 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2016-08-12 03:28Please 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 image from NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows a group of gullies formed on the equator-facing wall of a north mid-latitude crater. Gullies such as these might have formed from the erosive forces of liquid water. | 3 August 2006This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a group of gullies formed on the equator-facing wall of a north mid-latitude crater. Gullies such as these might have formed from the erosive forces of liquid water.Location near: 49.4°N, 56.1°W Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi) Illumination from: lower left Season: Northern Spring | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows a small section of Nirgal Valles. Located in Noachis Terra, Nirgal Valles is 610km long (379 miles). | Context imageToday's VIS image shows a small section of Nirgal Valles. Located in Noachis Terra, Nirgal Valles is 610km long (379 miles).Orbit Number: 91494 Latitude: -27.1735 Longitude: 316.077 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2022-07-30 21:59Please 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 shows dark dunes located in western Neredum Montes, near the margin of the Argyre Basin. | Context image for PIA10151Argyre DunesThe dark dunes in this VIS image are located in western Neredum Montes, near the margin of the Argyre Basin.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude -41.6N, Longitude 306.7E. 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. | |
The THEMIS VIS camera contains 5 filters. Data from different filters can be combined in many ways to create a false color image. The linear features in this image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft are the graben called Sirenum Fossae. | Context imageThe THEMIS 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. The linear features at the top and bottom of this image are the graben called Sirenum Fossae.Orbit Number: 58743 Latitude: -38.0839 Longitude: 175.637 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2015-03-12 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. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows many layers exposed and eroded into the form of ridges and troughs on shallow slopes within the martian north polar cap. | A. PIA0289786.5°N, 324.0°W --- 16 December 2000 --- illuminated from lower left 10 km (6.2 mi) wide by 3 km (1.9 mi) highB. PIA0289885.7°N, 307.9°W --- 2 December 2000 --- illuminated from upper left 2 km (1.2 mi) wide by 0.9 km (0.6 mi) highC. PIA0289987.0°N, 263.8°W --- 12 December 2000 --- illuminated from upper left 10 km (6.2 mi) wide by 3 km (1.9 mi) highOn Mars, Northern Hemisphere Summer (and Southern Hemisphere Winter) began on December 16, 2000. In this December holiday season, many children across the U.S. and elsewhere are perhaps anticipating an annual visit from a generous and jolly red-suited soul from the Earth's North Pole. As the December holidays were approaching, the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) was busy acquiring new views of the region around the martian north pole. The three best views obtained this month are shown here. The top (A) and bottom (C) views show many layers exposed and eroded into the form of ridges and troughs on shallow slopes within the martian north polar cap. The middle (B) view is a picture of the rugged, eroded polar ice cap surface itself. The layers are believed to have formed over tens to hundreds of thousands of years by deposition of dust and ice each cold martian winter. These surfaces today all appear to have been eroded. The brightest material in each image is frost--temperatures at this time of year indicate that the frost is composed of frozen water. In winter, temperatures can be cold enough to freeze carbon dioxide, as well. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows part of Sisyphi Cavi located in Noachis Terra near the south polar cap. | Context imageThis VIS image shows part of Sisyphi Cavi located in Noachis Terra near the south polar cap. Cavi are defined as steep sided depressions. Gullies dissect the cliff tops and dunes are found on the floors of the depressions.Orbit Number: 76175 Latitude: -71.7607 Longitude: 1.72024 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2019-02-15 12:27Please 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. | |
Crater Ejecta Morphology | Image PSP_001448_2135 was taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera onboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft on November 17, 2006. The complete image is centered at 33.0 degrees latitude, 143.7 degrees East longitude. The range to the target site was 292.9 km (183.1 miles). At this distance the image scale ranges from 29.3 cm/pixel (with 1 x 1 binning) to 58.6 cm/pixel (with 2 x 2 binning). 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 3:23 PM and the scene is illuminated from the west with a solar incidence angle of 48 degrees, thus the sun was about 42 degrees above the horizon. At a solar longitude of 136.6 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 approximate true-color image taken by the panoramic camera on the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit shows the rock dubbed 'Mazatzal' before the rover drilled into it with its rock abrasion tool. | This approximate true-color image taken by the panoramic camera on the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit shows the rock dubbed "Mazatzal" before the rover drilled into it with its rock abrasion tool. On sol 82, Spirit ground into a circular patch of the rock called "New York," then repeated this operation on sol 85 to complete the hole. Several observations were made during this grinding process with the rover's suite of scientific instruments. Preliminary results suggest that fluid may have been present during Mazatzal's formation. Images from the panoramic camera's blue, green and red filters (480, 530 and 600-nanometer filters) were combined to make this picture. | |
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity combined images into this stereo, 360-degree view of the rover's surroundings on Oct. 22, 2008. Opportunity's position was about 300 meters southwest of Victoria. 3D glasses are necessary to view this image. | Left-eye view of a color stereo pair for PIA11739Right-eye view of a color stereo pair for PIA11739NASA'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 1,687th Martian day, or sol, of its surface mission (Oct. 22, 2008). The view appears three-dimensional when viewed through red-blue glasses.Opportunity had driven 133 meters (436 feet) that sol, crossing sand ripples up to about 10 centimeters (4 inches) tall. The tracks visible in the foreground are in the east-northeast direction.Opportunity's position on Sol 1687 was about 300 meters southwest of Victoria Crater. The rover was beginning a long trek toward a much larger crater, Endeavour, about 12 kilometers (7 miles) to the southeast.This panorama combines right-eye and left-eye views presented as cylindrical-perspective projections with geometric seam correction. | |
NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter took these images of an area near Mars' south pole where coalescing or elongated pits are interpreted as signs of an underlying deposit of frozen carbon dioxide, or 'dry ice.' | Annotated VersionClick on the image for the larger versionThese images from orbit show an area near Mars' south pole where coalescing or elongated pits are interpreted as signs that an underlying deposit of frozen carbon dioxide, or "dry ice," has been shrinking by sublimation.The image on the left covers an area about 5.2 kilometers (3.2 miles) across, near 87 degrees south latitude, 268 degrees east longitude. It was taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. North is toward the lower left. The area indicated by the inscribed rectangle near the directional arrow is enlarged as the image on the right. Observations by the Shallow Subsurface Radar (SHARAD) instrument on the same orbiter indicate a thick deposit of dry ice beneath the surface in this area. Sublimation of that dry ice may have caused the pitting. In the magnified image at right, a thin water-ice layer on the surface exhibits heavy and concentric fracturing that may be a response to continued sublimation of the underlying, radar-detected layer. The smoother surface in much of the lower portion of the right-hand image is a thinner coat of dry ice that formed over the water ice after the fracturing and that is part of what is know as the "residual cap."These images are portions of HiRISE observation ESP_014342_0930, taken Aug. 18, 2009. Other image products from this observation are available at http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/ESP_014342_0930. HiRISE is operated by the University of Arizona, Tucson, and the instrument was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo. SHARAD was provided by the Italian Space Agency. Its operations are led by Sapienza University of Rome, and its data are analyzed by a joint U.S.-Italian science team. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for the NASA Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, built the spacecraft. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows part of Terra Cimmeria. Soffen Crater is at the top of the image, and is 58 km (36 miles) in diameter. | 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 part of Terra Cimmeria. Soffen Crater is at the top of the image, and is 58 km (36 miles) in diameter.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: 91831 Latitude: -24.6619 Longitude: 141.019 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2022-08-27 15:15Please 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 acquired by NASA's Mars Global Surveyor on April 13, 1998 shows the Cydonia region on Mars. | This image is a mosaic of the original data (at left) compared with the results of contrast enhancement (at right). The processing steps performed to create this image were: A long, narrow high-pass filter is applied in a vertical orientation to help reduce some of the instrument signature. This signature is seen as the streaking that is noticeable in the original data. A long, narrow low-pass filter is applied in a horizontal orientation to help create an intensity average for the image. The results of these filtering operations are the stretched to approximate a Gaussian distribution. The results of the high-pass and low-pass processing steps are averaged together to form the final product. The image is flipped about the vertical axis to correct for the camera orientation. The original and processed data are placed together in a mosaic. The completed image is sized down by a factor of 2, with interpolation, to make the finished result more manageable.Other information available for this image is the following: Orbit: 239 Range: 331.07 km Resolution: 2.5 m/pixel Image dimensions: 1024 X 9600 pixels, 2.5 km x 24 km Line time: 0.35 msec Emission angle: 2.35 degrees Incidence angle: 66.77 degrees Phase angle: 68.81 degrees Scan rate: ~0.15 degree/sec Start time: periapsis + 375 sec Sequence submitted to JPL: Mon 04/13/98 16:40 PDT Image acquired by MOC: Tue 04/14/98 07:02:17 PDT Data retrieved from JPL: Tue 04/14/98 17:30 PDT | |
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.' Some shapes suggest erosion by a fluid moving north and south. | 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."_x009d_ There are indications of layers in the image. Some shapes suggest erosion by a fluid moving north and south. The top of the light-toned deposit appears rough, in contrast to the smoothness of its surroundings. This area is also in a Context Camera image (P04_002536_1757).This caption is based on the original science rationale.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 and Mars Science Laboratory Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows part of Tractus Fossae, a region of north/south trending tectonic graben located south of Alba Mons. | Context imageThis VIS image shows part of Tractus Fossae, a region of north/south trending tectonic graben located south of Alba Mons. Graben are formed by extension of the crust and faulting. When large amounts of pressure or tension are applied to rocks on timescales that are fast enough that the rock cannot respond by deforming, the rock breaks along faults. In the case of a graben, two parallel faults are formed by extension of the crust and the rock in between the faults drops downward into the space created by the extension. Numerous sets of graben are visible in this THEMIS image, trending north/south. Because the faults defining the graben are formed parallel to the direction of the applied stress, we know that extensional forces were pulling the crust apart in the east/west direction. The large number of graben around Alba Mons is generally believed to be the result of extensional forces associated with the uplift of the volcano.Orbit Number: 87590 Latitude: 25.9931 Longitude: 258.163 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2021-09-12 11:18Please 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. | |
Taking advantage of Mars's closest approach to Earth in eight years, astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope have taken the space-based observatory's sharpest views yet of the Red Planet. | Taking advantage of Mars's closest approach to Earth in eight years, astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope have taken the space-based observatory's sharpest views yet of the Red Planet. NASA is releasing these images to commemorate the second anniversary of the Mars Pathfinder landing. The lander and its rover, Sojourner, touched down on the Red Planet's rolling hills on July 4, 1997, embarking on an historic three-month mission to gather information on the planet's atmosphere, climate, and geology.The telescope's Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 snapped images between April 27 and May 6, when Mars was 54 million miles (87 million kilometers) from Earth. From this distance the telescope could see Martian features as small as 12 miles (19 kilometers) wide. The telescope obtained four images PIA01587), which, together, show the entire planet.This image is centered near the location of the Pathfinder landing site. Dark sand dunes that surround the polar cap merge into a large, dark region called Acidalia. This area, as shown by images from the Hubble telescope and other spacecraft, is composed of dark, sand-sized grains of pulverized volcanic rock. Below and to the left of Acidalia are the massive Martian canyon systems of Valles Marineris, some of which form long linear markings that were once thought by some to be canals. Early morning clouds can be seen along the left limb of the planet, and a large cyclonic storm composed of water ice is churning near the polar cap.This color composite is generated from data using three filters: blue (410 nanometers), green (502 nanometers), and red (673 nanometers). | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows the delta deposit located on the floor of Eberswalde Crater. | Context imageAt the top left corner of today's VIS image is the delta deposit located on the floor of Eberswalde Crater. Deltas are formed when sediment laden rivers slow down – either due to a flattening of topography, or entering a standing body of water. The reduction in velocity causes the sediments to be deposited. The main channel often diverges into numerous smaller channel that spread apart to form the typical fan shape of a delta. The Eberswalde Crater delta is one of the best preserved on Mars.Orbit Number: 90982 Latitude: -24.1271 Longitude: 326.604 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2022-06-18 18:13Please 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 part of the floor of Russell Crater, including sand dunes of mulitple sizes. Russell Crater is located in Noachis Terra. | Context imageThis VIS image shows part of the floor of Russell Crater, including sand dunes of mulitple sizes. Russell Crater is located in Noachis Terra.Orbit Number: 74472 Latitude: -54.048 Longitude: 12.3835 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2018-09-28 06:34Please 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 part of the south polar cap. The cap was created over millions of years with deposition of ice and dust during different seasons. | Context imageThis false color image shows part of the south polar cap. The cap was created over millions of years with deposition of ice and dust during different seasons. This image was collected during spring time. In addition to the layers of ice/dust (bottom of image) the surface of the ice contains dark spots, may of which are elongated. The process forming these spots is still not understood, but likely occurs by geysers of ice and dust that erupt in regions of thin CO2 ice (dry ice). These spots will fade from view as spring changes into summer.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.Orbit Number: 65107 Latitude: -86.2797 Longitude: 98.6099 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2016-08-17 17:37Please 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. | |
Details of hilly terrain within a large Martian canyon are shown on a geological map based on observations from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and produced by the U.S. Geological Survey. | Figure 1High resolution TIFF fileClick on the image for larger browse versionDetails of hilly terrain within a large Martian canyon are shown on a geological map based on observations from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and produced by the U.S. Geological Survey Astrogeology Science Center, Flagstaff, Arizona.The map shows the structure and geology of a western portion of Mars' Candor Chasma, one of the largest canyons within the longest canyon system in the solar system, Valles Marineris. Landforms in the upper portion of this excerpt from the full map include a series of hills called Candor Colles.The notations on the image are explained in the legend with the full map, at Figure 1 and http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3309/. The geological analysis presented in this USGS mapping indicates that the canyon once held lakes, which filled with sediments. Shaking of the sediments by "marsquakes" related to faults in the region produced the hilly landforms of Candor Colles.The map is based on observations by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera, one of six science instruments on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. 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. | |
This illustration shows the proposed process for recovering Mars samples gathered by NASA's Perseverance Mars rover after they are returned to Earth as part of the joint NASA/ESA Mars Sample Return Campaign. | This illustration shows the proposed process for safely recovering, containing, and transporting Mars samples gathered by NASA's Perseverance Mars rover after they are returned to Earth as part of the joint NASA/ESA (European Space Agency) Mars Sample Return Campaign.The process of carefully containing and handling the samples would begin long before they arrive on Earth. Every phase of the Mars Sample Return campaign from collection and sealing to launch, transfer, and landing has been developed with a "safety first" approach. Sample handling and curation experts would be involved in planning for the round trip at each phase of the campaign.After its journey back to Earth from Mars on the ESA-provided Earth Return Orbiter, the capsule containing the samples would land at the Utah Test and Training Range in west-central Utah. NASA would securely transport the capsule and its contents to a Sample Return Facility at a location to be determined. Once at the facility, the samples would undergo a rigorous process to assess whether they are safe for release for detailed analysis by scientists from around the world.The multi-mission Mars Sample Return program is being planned by NASA and ESA. After the samples return to Earth, they would be transferred to NASA's Sample Receiving Project led by the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. The Sample Receiving Project, a joint NASA/ESA initiative, is managed by NASA's Mars Exploration Program. The Mars Exploration Program is managed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.For more information, visit: mars.nasa.gov. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows layered deposits in Uzboi Vallis which sometimes occur in alcoves along the valley and/or below where tributaries enter it. | Map Projected Browse ImageClick on the image for larger versionLayered deposits in Uzboi Vallis sometimes occur in alcoves along the valley and/or below where tributaries enter it. These deposits may record deposition into a large lake that once filled Uzboi Vallis when it was temporarily dammed at its northern end by the rim Holden Crater and before it was overtopped and breached allowing water to drain back out of the valley.Layered deposits similar to those here may remain preserved where they were protected from erosion during drainage of the lake. Data from the CRISM instrument onboard MRO shows that clays are within these deposits that may differ from clays found elsewhere on the valley floor. Hence, the clays in these layers may have been washed into the lake from surrounding clay-bearing surfaces.This is a stereo pair with PSP_008338_1525.The map is projected here at a scale of 50 centimeters (19.7 inches) per pixel. [The original image scale is 52.8 centimeters (20.8 inches) per pixel (with 2 x 2 binning); objects on the order of 158 centimeters (62.2 inches) across are resolved.] North is up.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 Caltech in Pasadena, California, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows a small section of Ma'adim Valles. Ma'adim Valles is an outflow channel that arises in the southern lowlands and flows northward into Gusev Crater. | Context imageThis VIS image shows a small section of Ma'adim Valles. Ma'adim Valles is an outflow channel that arises in the southern lowlands and flows northward into Gusev Crater, the home of the MER Spirit rover. Located in Terra Cimmeria, the channel is 700km (435 miles) long, with widths up to 20 km (12 miles) and depths to 2 km (1.2 miles) in places.Orbit Number: 91399 Latitude: -25.6089 Longitude: 176.544 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2022-07-23 02:16Please 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. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows part of the summit of Ascraeus Mons. | Context imageThis VIS image shows part of the summit of Ascraeus Mons. Ascraeus Mons is the northernmost and tallest of the three large aligned Tharsis volcanoes. Calderas are found at the tops of volcanoes and are the source region for magma that rises from an underground lava source to erupt at the surface. Volcanoes are formed by repeated flows from the central caldera. The final eruptions can pool within the summit caldera, leaving a flat surface as they cool. Calderas are also a location of collapse, creating rings of tectonic faults that form the caldera rim. Ascraeus Mons has several caldera features at its summit. Ascraeus Mons is 18 km (11 miles) tall, for comparison Mauna Kea – the tallest volcano on Earth – is 10 km tall (6.2 miles, measured from the base below sea level).Orbit Number: 94653 Latitude: 10.5186 Longitude: 256.223 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2023-04-17 00:48Please 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 the eight sharp tips of the NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's Atomic Force Microscope, or AFM. The AFM is part of Phoenix's Microscopy, Electrochemistry, and Conductivity Analyzer, or MECA. | This image shows the eight sharp tips of the NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's Atomic Force Microscope, or AFM. The AFM is part of Phoenix's Microscopy, Electrochemistry, and Conductivity Analyzer, or MECA.The microscope maps the shape of particles in three dimensions by scanning them with one of the tips at the end of a beam. For the AFM image taken, the tip at the end of the upper right beam was used. The tip pointing up in the enlarged image is the size of a smoke particle at its base, or 2 microns. This image was taken with a scanning electron microscope before Phoenix launched on August 4, 2007.The AFM was developed by a Swiss-led consortium in collaboration with Imperial College London.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 3-D cylindrical-perspective mosaic was created from navigation camera images that NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit captured on on sol 110. 3D glasses are necessary to view this image. | This three-dimensional, cylindrical-perspective projection was assembled from images taken by the navigation camera on the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit on sol 110 (April 24, 2004) at a region dubbed "site 35." Spirit is sitting approximately 33 meters (100 feet) away from the northeast rim of "Missoula" crater.See PIA05816 for left eye view and PIA05817 for right eye view of this 3-D cylindrical-perspective projection. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows a portion of a small dust storm that occurred during early southern autumn in April 2004 on the floor of a crater on Mars. | 7 November 2004This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a ~3.7 m/pixel (~12 ft/pixel) view of a portion of a small dust storm that occurred during early southern autumn in April 2004. The image is located on the floor of a crater near 57.8°S, 271.0°W. The image covers an area approximately 3 km (1.9 mi) across and is illuminated by sunlight from the upper left. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows the southwestern portion of Mars's Candor Chasma, part of the large canyon system named Valles Marineris on Mars. | Annotated VersionThis view, covering an area approximately 580 kilometers (360 miles) wide, includes the southwestern portion of Mars's Candor Chasma, part of the large canyon system named Valles Marineris.The image is excerpted from a larger image (available at http://themis.asu.edu/zoom-20041008A) based on observations by the Thermal Emission Imaging System camera on NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter.The annotated version shows the location of a study area within Mars' Candor Chasma within regional context.Rock layers in the indicated study area have been observed by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.Illumination is from the left, and north is up. | |
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows a valley running diagonally, the floor of which is covered by windblown dunes. The slopes on either side of the valley show dark streaks of debris that have slid down from the surrounding ridges in Cyane Sulci on Mars. | Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) was launched from Earth just over five years ago on November 7, 1996. It began to orbit Mars on September 12, 1997. After slightly more than four years in orbit, we have now received our 100,000th image from the MGS Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC). For comparison, the Viking 1 and Viking 2 orbiters together returned ~55,000 images during the time they were operational from 1976 to 1980. The Vikings returned about 70 Gbytes of data; MOC has returned 163 Gbytes (after decompression).MOC's 100,000th image was received on November 5, 2001. Its context frame (below) was received at the same time. The 100,000th image is located near 24.2°N, 127.4°W, in Cyane Sulci, a grouping of ridges northeast of the giant volcano, Olympus Mons. This image shows a valley running diagonally from near the upper right to the lower left, the floor of which is covered by windblown dunes. The slopes on either side of the valley show dark streaks of debris that have slid down from the surrounding ridges. The image has fairly low contrast and a streaked appearance because the atmosphere of Mars was still somewhat hazy following a series of large dust storms that nearly obscured the planet between July and October 2001. Both images are illuminated from the lower left, the high resolution view (above) covers an area 1.5 km (0.9 mi) across, the context view (with white box to indicate location of high resolution view) covers an area 63 km (39 mi) across.To date, more than two-thirds of all MOC images, covering the first year and a half of pre-mapping operations and the first full Mars year of mapping, have been carefully examined, validated, cataloged, and archived with the NASA Planetary Data System (PDS). To view these first 78,000+ MOC images, visit the MOC Gallery. Work is on-going to similarly process data being collected during the "extended mission" presently underway, which will be archived in future deliveries to the PDS. | |
This panorama, taken on Feb. 20, 2021, by the Navigation Cameras, or Navcams, aboard NASA's Perseverance Mars rover, was stitched together from six individual images after they were sent back to Earth. | Figure 1Figure 2Figure 3Figure 4This panorama, taken on Feb. 20, 2021, by the Navigation Cameras, or Navcams, aboard NASA's Perseverance Mars rover, was stitched together from six individual images after they were sent back to Earth.A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith.Subsequent missions, currently under consideration by NASA in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these cached samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis.The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is part of NASA's Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes Artemis missions to the Moon that will help prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California built and manages operations of the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover for NASA.For more information about the mission, go to: https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020 | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows a section of Mamers Valles. The channel is nearly 1000 km long (600 miles). | Context imageToday's VIS image shows a section of Mamers Valles. The channel is nearly 1000 km long (600 miles). Mamers Valles originates near Cerulli Crater in northern Arabia Terra, and after a short section near the crater where flow is to the south, flows northward to empty in Deuteronilus Mensae. The steep walls of Mamers Valles can reach heights of 1200 m (4000 feet).Orbit Number: 79200 Latitude: 31.0046 Longitude: 19.9804 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2019-10-22 15:40Please 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. | |
NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft takes a look at THEMIS image as art. Many science-fiction writers have postulated many life forms on Mars. Perhaps Martian unicorns? | Welcome to another brief interval of THEMIS Images as Art. For two weeks, we will be showcasing images for their aesthetic value rather than their science content. Portions of these images resemble things in our everyday lives, from animals to letters of the alphabet. We hope you enjoy our fanciful look at Mars!Martian Unicorns?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. | |
These images at 'Garden City' from the Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover indicate similarly dark material, but with very different chemistries, in mineral veins. | These images from the Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover indicate similarly dark material, but with very different chemistries, in mineral veins at "Garden City."Each of the side-by-side circular images covers an area about 2 inches (5 centimeters) in diameter. The images were taken by ChemCam's Remote Micro-Imager. Researchers used ChemCam's laser, telescope and spectrometers to examine the chemistry of material in these veins. While both of these veins are dark, their chemistries are very different, indicating that they were formed by different fluids. One common aspect of the chemistry in the dark material is an iron content higher than nearby bedrock. Thus the dark appearance may be result of similar iron content. The dark maerial in the vein on the left is enriched in calcium and contains calcium fluorine. The dark material in the vein on the right is enriched in magnesium, but not in calcium or calcium fluorine. Thus, the veins were formed by different fluids that deposited minerals in rock fractures. The Remote Micro-Imager took the image on the left on March 27, 2015, during the 938th Martian day, or sol, of Curiosity's work on Mars. The next day, it took the image on the right. A broader view of the prominent mineral veins at Garden City is at PIA19161.ChemCam is one of 10 instruments in Curiosity's science payload. The U.S. Department of Energy's Los Alamos National Laboratory, in Los Alamos, New Mexico, developed ChemCam in partnership with scientists and engineers funded by the French national space agency (CNES), the University of Toulouse and the French national research agency (CNRS). More information about ChemCam is available at http://www.msl-chemcam.com. More information about Curiosity is online at http://www.nasa.gov/msl and http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/. | |
This set of images from the Instrument Deployment Camera shows NASA's InSight lander placing its first instrument onto the surface of Mars, completing a major mission milestone. | Click here for animationThis set of images shows NASA's InSight lander deploying its first instrument onto the surface of Mars, completing a major mission milestone. InSight's robotic arm is white, with a black, handlike grapple at the end. The grapple is holding onto the copper-colored seismometer.The color-calibrated image was taken on Dec. 19, 2018, around dusk on Mars, with InSight's Instrument Deployment Camera (IDC), which is on the lander's robotic arm.JPL manages InSight for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. InSight is part of NASA's Discovery Program, managed by the agency's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Lockheed Martin Space in Denver built the InSight spacecraft, including its cruise stage and lander, and supports spacecraft operations for the mission.A number of European partners, including France's Centre National d'Études Spatiales (CNES) and the German Aerospace Center (DLR), are supporting the InSight mission. CNES and the Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris (IPGP) provided the Seismic Experiment for Interior Structure (SEIS) instrument, with significant contributions from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS) in Germany, the Swiss Institute of Technology (ETH) in Switzerland, Imperial College and Oxford University in the United Kingdom, and JPL. DLR provided the Heat Flow and Physical Properties Package (HP3) instrument, with significant contributions from the Space Research Center (CBK) of the Polish Academy of Sciences and Astronika in Poland. Spain's Centro de Astrobiología (CAB) supplied the wind sensors.For more information about the mission, go to https://mars.nasa.gov/insight. | |
This image from NASA's Mars Odyssey shows a landslide located in an unnamed crater in Terra Sirenum. | Context image for PIA10313LandslideThis landslide is located in an unnamed crater in Terra Sirenum.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude -32.0N, Longitude 201.1E. 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 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows lava flows which have plunged over the steep escarpment marking the edge of Olympus Mons into the surrounding plains. | Context image
This VIS image shows lava flows which have plunged over the steep escarpment marking the edge of Olympus Mons into the surrounding plains.
Orbit Number: 45706 Latitude: 23.423 Longitude: 227.218 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2012-04-03 16:17
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. | |
Crater floors can have a range of features, from flat to a central peak or a central pit. This image from NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft shows an unnamed crater in Terra Sabaea has a central pit. | Context imageCrater floors can have a range of features, from flat to a central peak or a central pit. This unnamed crater in Terra Sabaea has a central pit. The different floor features develop do due several factors, including the size of the impactor, the geology of the surface material and the geology of the materials at depth.Orbit Number: 60737 Latitude: 22.3358 Longitude: 61.2019 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2015-08-23 20:13Please 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 June 2017 stereo view from NASA's Opportunity Mars rover shows the area just above 'Perseverance Valley' on the rim of a crater. | This June 2017 stereo scene from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity rover shows the area just above "Perseverance Valley" on the rim of Endeavour Crater. The view combines images from the left eye and right eye of the rover's panoramic camera (Pancam) to appear three-dimensional when seen through blue-red glasses with the red lens on the left.Toward the right side of the scene is a broad notch in the crest of the crater's rim. Opportunity left wheel tracks in that area as it observed Perseverance Valley from above in the spring of 2017. The valley is a major destination for the rover's extended mission. It descends out of sight on the inner slope of the rim, extending down and eastward from that notch.Opportunity's Pancam took the component images for this view from a position outside the crater during the span of June 7 to June 19, 2017, sols 4753 to 4765 of the rover's work on Mars. This scene includes features that might have been ancient channels from water, ice or wind moving toward the notch in the rim, which might have been a spillway. Perseverance Valley, just on the other side, was likely carved by action of some fluid, such as water, water-lubricated debris, or wind. The mission is investigating to learn more about that process from evidence in place.The panorama spans about three-fourths of a full-circle view, from southeastward on the left, through westward in the middle, to northeastward on the right. High points visible on the rim of Endeavour Crater include "Winnemucca" on the left and "Cape Tribulation" on the right. Winnemucca is part of the "Cape Byron" portion of the crater rim. The horizon at far right extends across the floor of Endeavour Crater, which is about 14 miles (22 kilometers) in diameter. Opportunity has been investigating sites on and near the western rim of Endeavour since 2011, following seven years of exploring smaller craters after its 2004 landing. Images showing more of the crater's rim, for context, are at PIA21496, PIA21490 and PIA17758.The rover team calls this the "Sprained Ankle" panorama because the images were collected during a driving moratorium while engineers diagnosed a temporary steering stall with one front wheel pointed outward more than 30 degrees. The team was able to straighten the wheel to point straight ahead, and then resumed driving.The location from which this scene was recorded is labeled as "Sol 4752" on a later traverse map. Opportunity subsequently entered the upper end of Perseverance Valley and returned views looking down the valley and back up toward the rim crest from the location it reached on July 7 (Sol 4782).Photojournal Note: Also available is the full resolution TIFF file PIA21721_full.tif. This file may be too large to view from a browser; it can be downloaded onto your desktop by right-clicking on the previous link and viewed with image viewing software. | |
This image shows a small landslide on the northern margin of Tiu Vallis on Mar as seen by NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft. | Context image for PIA09125 Tiu VallisThis image shows a small landslide on the northern margin of Tiu Vallis.Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 5.5N, Longitude 327.9E. 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. |
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