Media Information

 
 
 
Collection:
NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection
Title:
Opportunity Studies Bait in Shark's Cage
Original Caption Released with Image:
In its 49th sol on Mars, NASA's Opportunity had nearly concluded its scientific examination of the extreme southwestern end of the outcrop in Meridiani Planum. In the "Shark's Cage" area of the neighborhood called "Shoemaker's Patio," featured in this image from the front hazard avoidance camera, Opportunity deployed its arm to study the features called "Shark's Tooth," "Shark Pellets," and "Lamination." "Shark's Tooth" is a piece of the unusual red rind that appears to fill cracks in the outcrop. This rind may be some kind of chemical alteration of the rocks. "Shark Pellets" is an area of soil that was under investigation as part of the crater soil survey. "Lamination" is a target with very thin layers that resemble uniform pages in a book, an indication of how the sediments were deposited. A final experiment in this area will be attempted on sol 51. Opportunity's front left wheel will "scuff" the rock called "Carousel." "Scuffing" involves scraping the rock with one wheel while holding all the others still. This experiment essentially turns the rover wheels into tools, to try and determine the hardness of the target rock.
Image Credit:
NASA/JPL
Produced By:
JPL
Mission:
Mars Exploration Rover (MER)
Spacecraft:
Opportunity
Target Name:
Mars
Is a satellite of:
Sol (our sun)
Instrument:
Hazard Identification Camera
Product Size:
3100 samples x 3100 lines
facet_what:
Sun
facet_what:
Crater
facet_what:
Mars
facet_what:
Opportunity
facet_what:
Hazard-identificatio n Camera
facet_what:
Mars Exploration Rover (MER)
facet_where:
Mars
facet_where:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
Image #:
PIA05572
UID:
SPD-PHOTJ-PIA05572
orignial url:

Opportunity Studies Bait in Shark's Cage