Media Information

 
 
 
Collection:
NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection
Title:
What Lies Beneath
Original Caption Released with Image:
The Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity dragged one of its wheels back and forth across the sandy soil at Meridiani Planum to create a hole (center) measuring approximately 50 centimeters (19.7 inches) long by 20 centimeters (7.9 inches) wide by 9 centimeters (3.5 inches) deep. The rover's instrument deployment device, or arm, will begin studying the fresh soil at the bottom of the trench later today for clues to its mineral composition and history. Scientists chose this particular site for trenching because previous data taken by the rover's miniature thermal emission spectrometer indicated that it contains crystalline hematite, a mineral that sometimes forms in the presence of water. The brightness of the newly-exposed soil is thought to be either intrinsic to the soil itself, or a reflection of the Sun. This image was taken by the rover's hazard-avoidance camera.
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:
1022 samples x 624 lines
facet_what:
Sun
facet_what:
Spectrometer
facet_what:
Mars
facet_what:
Opportunity
facet_what:
Hazard-identificatio n Camera
facet_what:
Hazard-Avoidance Camera
facet_what:
Thermal Emission Spectrometer (Mini-TES)
facet_what:
Mars Exploration Rover (MER)
facet_what:
Miniature Thermal Emission Spectrometer (Mini-TES)
facet_where:
Mars
facet_where:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
Image #:
PIA05307
UID:
SPD-PHOTJ-PIA05307
orignial url:

What Lies Beneath