Mars Rover Snapped From Orbit

A high resolution camera on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has taken a remarkable picture that shows the exploration rover Opportunity poised on the rim of Mars’ Victoria crater.


“We’re poised to have a fantastic mission, and we’re not even at prime science mission yet,” said Alfred S. McEwen. “This was our very first attempt to image ‘off-nadir’ (at an angle as opposed to straight down), and it worked fabulously well,” he added. “It’s been an exciting week.”

Alfred S. McEwen, of the University of Arizona (UA) Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, is principal investigator for The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE), which is operated from UA’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory in Tucson.

The rover Opportunity drove more than five miles to get to Victoria crater, an impact crater at Meridiani Planum, near Mars’ equator. The HiRISE camera took its picture five days later, at 3:30 p.m. local Mars time, as the sun was about 30 degrees above the horizon, illuminating the scene from the west. The NASA orbiter was flying 186 miles above the planet’s surface. McEwen said that the HiRise camera could resolve objects that are 35 inches across at that altitude.


HiRISE’s impressive overview of Victoria crater shows a distinctive scalloped shape to its rim. This is formed by eroding crater wall material moving downhill. Layered sedimentary rocks are exposed along the inner wall of the crater, and boulders that have fallen from the crater wall are visible on the crater floor. A field of sand dunes covers much of the crater floor.

“The ground-truth we get from the rover images and measurements enables us to better interpret features we see elsewhere on Mars, including very rugged and dramatic terrains that we can’t currently study on the ground,” McEwen said. “Stay tuned,” McEwen said at the NASA briefing. “If you think this HiRISE image is spectacular, just wait.”

More pics from the University of Arizona.

Source: University of Arizona

, ,

Comments are closed.

Retro 51 Mission To Mars Rollerball Pen picture

Retro 51 Mission To Mars Rollerball Pen

$305.00



US Navy USS Mars AFS-1 Patch picture

US Navy USS Mars AFS-1 Patch

$20.00



(Qty 4) MARS MEI 2411 $1 ALL $5 dollar bill unit validator 300 mag stacker UP picture

(Qty 4) MARS MEI 2411 $1 ALL $5 dollar bill unit validator 300 mag stacker UP

$600.00



NEW  - TERRAFORMING MARS SOIL ENRICHMENT PROMO CARD picture

NEW - TERRAFORMING MARS SOIL ENRICHMENT PROMO CARD

$7.80



Lars Of Mars #1 3D w/Glasses Nice Copy K2 picture

Lars Of Mars #1 3D w/Glasses Nice Copy K2

$14.99



MARS ROCK DISPLAY - MARTIAN METEORITE - BASIC EDITION +EASEL +CERTIFICATE picture

MARS ROCK DISPLAY - MARTIAN METEORITE - BASIC EDITION +EASEL +CERTIFICATE

$16.95



Mick Mars Montley Crue Super7 Reaction Action Figure picture

Mick Mars Montley Crue Super7 Reaction Action Figure

$21.99



VTG Rare 2003 COLLECTIBLE M&M Mars EASTER Coffee Tea Mug Cup CHOOSE COLOR picture

VTG Rare 2003 COLLECTIBLE M&M Mars EASTER Coffee Tea Mug Cup CHOOSE COLOR

$6.99



Mars Rock - Authentic Piece of Martian Meteorite picture

Mars Rock - Authentic Piece of Martian Meteorite

$300.00



3 MARS ROCK DISPLAY -37mg MARTIAN METEORITE -MUSEUM EDITION -Jumbo Display+Easel picture

3 MARS ROCK DISPLAY -37mg MARTIAN METEORITE -MUSEUM EDITION -Jumbo Display+Easel

$37.95



Powered by WordPress. Designed by WooThemes