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Collection:
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NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection
Collection
NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection
Collection
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Title:
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New Cydonia Picture
Title
New Cydonia Picture
Title
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Original Caption Released with Image:
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The Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) onboard the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) orbiter, was designed specifically to bridge the gap between what can be seen from orbit in typical Mariner 9 and Viking orbiter images, and what can be seen from the ground by landers such as Viking 1 and Mars Pathfinder. The camera, therefore, takes pictures of extremely high resolution. These images are often comparable to aerial photographs used by geologists when they are exploring Earth. The highest resolution images that can be obtained are in the range of 1.4 to 2.0 meters (4.6 to 6.5 feet) per pixel.
Last year, several pictures of a portion of the Cydonia region of Mars were photographed at lower resolution than is now possible in the Mapping Phase of the MGS mission. The Cydonia region is perhaps most "famous" for being the location of a feature that--in Viking Orbiter images--seemed to resemble a human face. Nearby buttes and hills were considered by some to represent a "city."
The MGS spacecraft flew over the "famous" Cydonia landforms again--for the first time since April 1998--on June 27, 1999, at 10:53 UTC (Greenwich Time Zone). The new MOC images shown here provide the highest resolution view yet obtained of the "Cydonia city" landforms.
The picture at the above left (MOC2-142a)
Original_Caption_Rel eased_with_Image
The Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) onboard the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) orbiter, was designed specifically to bridge the gap between what can be seen from orbit in typical Mariner 9 and Viking orbiter images, and what can be seen from the ground by landers such as Viking 1 and Mars Pathfinder. The camera, therefore, takes pictures of extremely high resolution. These images are often comparable to aerial photographs used by geologists when they are exploring Earth. The highest resolution images that can be obtained are in the range of 1.4 to 2.0 meters (4.6 to 6.5 feet) per pixel.
Last year, several pictures of a portion of the Cydonia region of Mars were photographed at lower resolution than is now possible in the Mapping Phase of the MGS mission. The Cydonia region is perhaps most "famous" for being the location of a feature that--in Viking Orbiter images--seemed to resemble a human face. Nearby buttes and hills were considered by some to represent a "city."
The MGS spacecraft flew over the "famous" Cydonia landforms again--for the first time since April 1998--on June 27, 1999, at 10:53 UTC (Greenwich Time Zone). The new MOC images shown here provide the highest resolution view yet obtained of the "Cydonia city" landforms.
The picture at the above left (MOC2-142a)
Original Caption Released with Image
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Original Caption Released with Image:
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shows the regional context. Cydonia constitutes a transition zone between the cratered highlands of Arabia Terra, and the less-cratered lowlands of Acidalia Planitia. This transition zone contains thousands of mesas and buttes--somewhat like the Monument Valley region along the Arizona/Utah border in North America. The white box shows the location of the new high resolution view of the "city" landforms. The image is a red wide angle context frame obtained by MOC at the same time that the high resolution view was acquired. The picture is illuminated from the lower left, and north is toward the upper right. The picture in the center is a processed version of the new MOC narrow angle camera image of this portion of Cydonia. You can view the full-size image Like the context image (above left), the high resolution view (center) is illuminated from the lower left. North is toward the upper right. Boulders can be seen on some of the hill slopes, and the plains between the hills are rough and pitted. To conserve data in order to account for downtrack position uncertainties, only 1/2 of the MOC sensor was used to acquire this picture (allowing the image to be twice the length): it covers an area that is 1.5 km (0.9 mi) wide. The picture at the above right is the unprocessed MOC image. This what the processed image (center) looked like before it was rotated 180° (so that north is toward the top) and corrected for a 1.5 aspect ratio. The pixel size in the unprocessed image is different in the cross-track (left-right) and down-track(top-botto m) directions, thus making the craters look "squished." The cross-track scale is about 1.5 meters (5 feet) per pixel, while the down-track scale is about 2.25 meters (7.4 feet) per pixel. In the unprocessed image, the illumination is coming from the upper right. You can view this image at full-size (use "Save this link as..." and examine (MOC2-142c 100% Size) or see it via your web-browser at half-size (MOC2-142c 50% Size). For a look at the Cydonia images previously obtained by MGS MOC in 1998, CLICKHERE. For a pre-MGS discussion of Viking orbiter images of the "Face on Mars," CLICKHERE. Malin Space Science Systems 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.
Original_Caption_Rel eased_with_Image
shows the regional context. Cydonia constitutes a transition zone between the cratered highlands of Arabia Terra, and the less-cratered lowlands of Acidalia Planitia. This transition zone contains thousands of mesas and buttes--somewhat like the Monument Valley region along the Arizona/Utah border in North America. The white box shows the location of the new high resolution view of the "city" landforms. The image is a red wide angle context frame obtained by MOC at the same time that the high resolution view was acquired. The picture is illuminated from the lower left, and north is toward the upper right. The picture in the center is a processed version of the new MOC narrow angle camera image of this portion of Cydonia. You can view the full-size image Like the context image (above left), the high resolution view (center) is illuminated from the lower left. North is toward the upper right. Boulders can be seen on some of the hill slopes, and the plains between the hills are rough and pitted. To conserve data in order to account for downtrack position uncertainties, only 1/2 of the MOC sensor was used to acquire this picture (allowing the image to be twice the length): it covers an area that is 1.5 km (0.9 mi) wide. The picture at the above right is the unprocessed MOC image. This what the processed image (center) looked like before it was rotated 180° (so that north is toward the top) and corrected for a 1.5 aspect ratio. The pixel size in the unprocessed image is different in the cross-track (left-right) and down-track(top-botto m) directions, thus making the craters look "squished." The cross-track scale is about 1.5 meters (5 feet) per pixel, while the down-track scale is about 2.25 meters (7.4 feet) per pixel. In the unprocessed image, the illumination is coming from the upper right. You can view this image at full-size (use "Save this link as..." and examine (MOC2-142c 100% Size) or see it via your web-browser at half-size (MOC2-142c 50% Size). For a look at the Cydonia images previously obtained by MGS MOC in 1998, CLICKHERE. For a pre-MGS discussion of Viking orbiter images of the "Face on Mars," CLICKHERE. Malin Space Science Systems 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. Original Caption Released with Image
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Addition Date:
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1999-07-09
Addition_Date
1999-07-09
Addition Date
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Image Credit:
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NASA/JPL/MSSS
Image_Credit
NASA/JPL/MSSS
Image Credit
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Produced By:
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Malin Space Science Systems
Produced_By
Malin Space Science Systems
Produced By
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Mission:
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Mars Global Surveyor (MGS)
Mission
Mars Global Surveyor (MGS)
Mission
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Spacecraft:
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Mars Global Surveyor Orbiter
Spacecraft
Mars Global Surveyor Orbiter
Spacecraft
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Target Name:
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Mars
Target_Name
Mars
Target Name
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Is a satellite of:
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Sol (our sun)
Is_a_satellite_of
Sol (our sun)
Is a satellite of
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Instrument:
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Mars Orbiter Camera
Instrument
Mars Orbiter Camera
Instrument
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Product Size:
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415 samples x 3214 lines
Product_Size
415 samples x 3214 lines
Product Size
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Primary Data Set:
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MGS EDRs
Primary_Data_Set
MGS EDRs
Primary Data Set
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Producer ID:
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MOC2-142
P50483
MRPS95145
Producer_ID
MOC2-142
P50483
MRPS95145
Producer ID
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facet_what:
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Sun
facet_what
Sun
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Mariner
facet_what
Mariner
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Earth
facet_what
Earth
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Mars
facet_what
Mars
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Viking
facet_what
Viking
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Terra
facet_what
Terra
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Mars Pathfinder
facet_what
Mars Pathfinder
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Surveyor
facet_what
Surveyor
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Mars Observer
facet_what
Mars Observer
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Mariner 9
facet_what
Mariner 9
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Mars Global Surveyor Orbiter (MGS)
facet_what
Mars Global Surveyor Orbiter (MGS)
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC)
facet_what
Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC)
facet_what
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facet_where:
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory
facet_where
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Denver
facet_where
Denver
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Mars
facet_where
Mars
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Arizona
facet_where
Arizona
facet_where
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facet_where:
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California
facet_where
California
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Utah
facet_where
Utah
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
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facet_when:
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1998
facet_when
1998
facet_when
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facet_when:
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April 1998
facet_when
April 1998
facet_when
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facet_when:
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June 27, 1999
facet_when
June 27, 1999
facet_when
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facet_when_year:
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1999
facet_when_year
1999
facet_when_year
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facet_when_year:
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1998
facet_when_year
1998
facet_when_year
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Image #:
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PIA02092
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UID:
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SPD-PHOTJ-PIA02092
UID
SPD-PHOTJ-PIA02092
UID
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orignial url:
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orignial_url
orignial url
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