80807_full.jpg (124K) |
80808_full.jpg (31K) |
80809_full.jpg (47K) |
| This picture from Mars Pathfinder
was taken at 9:30 AM in the martian morning (2:30 PM Pacific Daylight Time),
after the spacecraft landed earlier today (July 4, 1997). The picture shows
these Sojourner rover perched on one of three solar panels. The rover is
65 cm (26 inches) long by 18 cm (7 inches) tall; each of its wheels is
about 13 cm (5 inches) high. The white material to the left of the front
of the rover is part of the airbag system used to cushion the landing.
Many rocks of different of different sizes can be seen, set in a background
of reddish soil. The landing site is in the mouth of an ancient channel
carved by water. The rocks may be primarily flood debris. The horizon is
seen towards the top of the picture. The light brown hue of the sky results
from suspended dust.
|
Large boulders are visible
in this enlargement of pictures taken by the Mars Pathfinder lander camera
on July 4, 1997. The landing site is in the dry flood channel named Ares
Valles. The boulders probably represent deposits from one of the catastrophic
floods that carved the ancient channel. Between the rocks is brownish windblown
soil. The gray-tan sky results from dust particles in the atmosphere. |
This closeup picture of the
Mars Pathfinder lander shows the front of the small Sojourner rover, perched
on a solar panel. The white material in front of the rover is a portion
of the air bag system. Beyond the air bag is the rock-strewn Martian surface.
A number of image processing artifacts are seen in this picture. Most apparent
are seams between sub-frames offsetting portions of the rover's wheels
and solar panel, color fringes that result from viewing the rover from
the two separated eyes of the camera, and blocky fringes near edges and
smooth areas that are created by data compression. |
80811_full.jpg (124K) |
80812_full.jpg (31K) |
80813_full.jpg (109K) |
| This is one of the first pictures
taken by the camera on the Mars Pathfinder lander shortly after its touchdown
at 10:07 AM Pacific Daylight Time on July 4, 1997. The small rover, named
Sojourner, is seen in the foreground in its position on a solar panel of
the lander. The white material on either side of the rover is part of the
deflated airbag system used to absorb the shock of the landing. Between
the rover and the horizon is the rock-strewn martian surface. Two hills
are seen in the right distance, profiled against the light brown sky. |
In this image from the Pathfinder
IMP camera, a diversity of rocks are strewn in the foreground. A hill is
visible in the distance (the notch within the hill is an image artifact).
Airbags are seen at the lower right. |
View of martian surface taken
by the Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP), the camera on board the Mars Pathfinder
lander. This image was taken in mid-morning on Mars (2:30 PM Pacific Daylight
Time, July 4, 1997). Part of the small rover, Sojourner, is visible on
the left side of the picture. The tan cylinder to the right of the rover
is one of two rolled-up ramps by which the rover will descend to the ground.
The white, billowy material in the center of the picture is part of the
airbag system. Many rocks of different shapes and sizes are visible between
the lander and the horizon. Two hills are visible on the horizon. The notch
on the left side of the leftmost conical hill is an artifact of the processing
of this picture. |
80814_full.jpg (47K) |
80815_full.jpg (31K) |
80816_full.jpg (31K) |
| This image from the Pathfinder
IMP camera shows the rear part of the Sojourner rover, the rolled-up rear
ramp, and portions of the partially deflated airbags. The Alpha Proton
X-ray Spectrometer is protruding from the rear (right side) of the rover.
The airbags behind the rover are presently blocking the ramp from being
safely unfurled. |
This image from the Mars Pathfinder
IMP camera shows airbags in the foreground, a large rock in the mid-field,
and a hill in the background. |
This image from the Mars Pathfinder
IMP camera shows portions of the airbags, part of a petal, soil, and several
rocks. The furrows in the soil were artificially produced by the retraction
of the airbags after landing. |
