Media Information

 
 
 
Collection:
NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection
Title:
Spirit Landing Site in Infrared
Original Caption Released with Image:


Released 12 January 2004

Long before the MER landers were named or launched, the two orbiters at Mars were asked to examine landing sites. Both the Odyssey and Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft have been collecting landing site data for the past two years. The MGS and ODY data were used as part of the decision making process in the final selection of the two landing sites. The types of data collected by the two orbiters included not only images of the surface but also thermal data about the surface composition, atmospheric data about the climate at each location, and the tracking of major dust storms in the region prior to landing. The presence of, and data collected by, the MGS and ODY orbiters have proven invaluable in MER mission planning.

This infrared image, captured just six weeks ago (27 November 2003), shows the central part of Gusev crater, including Columbia Memorial Station, Spirit's landing site (in the area pointed to by the arrow).

Image information: IR instrument. Latitude -14.4, Longitude 175.7 East (184.3 West). 100 meter/pixel resolution.

Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.
Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Arizona State University
Produced By:
Arizona State University
Mission:
2001 Mars Odyssey
Spacecraft:
2001 Mars Odyssey
Target Name:
Mars
Is a satellite of:
Sol (our sun)
Instrument:
Thermal Emission Imaging System
Product Size:
320 samples x 7184 lines
facet_what:
Sun
facet_what:
Crater
facet_what:
Spirit
facet_what:
Mars
facet_what:
2001 Mars Odyssey
facet_what:
Surveyor
facet_what:
Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS)
facet_what:
Mars Global Surveyor Orbiter (MGS)
facet_what:
Mars Exploration Rover (MER)
facet_what:
Columbia
facet_where:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
facet_where:
Denver
facet_where:
Mars
facet_where:
Arizona
facet_where:
California
facet_where:
Washington
facet_where:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where:
Washington, D.C.
facet_when:
27 November 2003
facet_when:
12 January 2004
facet_when_year:
2004
facet_when_year:
2003
Image #:
PIA05350
UID:
SPD-PHOTJ-PIA05350
orignial url:

Spirit Landing Site in Infrared