Spirit's View of Own Underbelly, (Stereo from Two Sols)
NASA/JPL-Caltech/USGS · Download full size image
This stereo view combines a pair of images taken two months apart by the microscopic imager on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit. Rover team members used the microscopic imager on the rover's arm to accomplish something never intended during the design of the rover or that camera -- getting a look underneath the rover. They did so to get a better understanding of Spirit's predicament, with wheels embedded deeply enough in soft soil at a site called "Troy" for the rover to be at risk of getting hung up on a rock under the rover. The dark triangular shape is a rock that is either touching or nearly touching Spirit's underbelly.
The two images combined here come from two camera positions, one slightly to left of the other, yielding a three-dimensional view when seen through red and blue glasses with the red lens on the left. The microscopic imager took one of the pair during Sol (Martian day) 1925 of Spirit's mission on Mars (June 2, 2009) and the other during Sol 1990 (Aug. 8, 2009). The team had not commanded any driving moves by Spirit in the interim while it was running experiments with a test rover on Earth to evaluate possible maneuvers for getting Spirit away from Troy.
The microscopic imager is designed to focus on rock or soil targets 6 centimeters (2.4 inches) away. It rides on the end of the rover's robotic arm so that it can be placed close to targets for inspection. It cannot focus on objects as far away as the rover underbelly and rocks that are visible in this image despite being out of focus.
The team has used this image as an aid in planning a drive strategy for Spirit. The rock underneath presents a risk of high-centering the rover if the wheels sink much further into the soil.
Posted on: 25 Aug, 2009
- Mariner 4 -- Mars
- Mariner 6 & 7 -- Mars
- Mariner 9 -- Mars
- Mariner 10 -- Mercury
- Viking to Mars
- Magellan to Venus
- Mars Pathfinder
- Deep Space 1
- Mars Climate Orbiter
- Mars Polar Lander
- Sputnik
- Explorer
- Vanguard
- Cassini/Huygens Mission
- Clementine Moon Mapping
- Galileo
- Genesis
- Giotto ESA
- Lunar Orbiter
- Lunar Prospector
- Mars Global Surveyor
- 2001 Mars Odyssey
- Mars 96 (Russian)
- NEAR
- Nozomi to Mars (JAPAN)
- Mars Phobos (Russian)
- Pioneer to Venus
- Pioneer 10
- Pioneer 11
- Ranger Lunar Mission
- Sakigake Comet Halley
- Suisei Comet Halley
- Surveyor Moon Mapping
- Ulysses
- Vega 1 (Russia)
- Vega 2 (Russia)
- Venera to Venus (Russian)
- Voyager
- Zond Soviet Lunar Missions
- Mars Exploration Rover - Spirit
- Mars Exploration Rover - Opportunity
- Mars Express
- Mars Rovers - Artwork
- Mars Rovers - Spacecraft
- Deep Impact
- Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
- Stardust
- Venus Express
- STEREO (Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory)
- Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (HiRISE)
- New Horizons
- STEREO (Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory) 3-D Sun Images
- MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer)
- MESSENGER
- MODIS Image Of The Day Archive
- Phoenix Mars Lander
- Chandrayaan-1
- Kepler
- Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
- Cassini-Huygens (ESA)
Latest Thoughts
-
Dec 3, 2009, 3:39 pm
Mammograms: Do You Agree With the New Guidelines?
-
Dec 3, 2009, 11:22 am
iPhone Used As Musical Instrument
-
Dec 3, 2009, 9:19 am
Zooming In On Trumpler 14
-
Dec 3, 2009, 8:55 am
Study: Meditation Could Cut the Risk for Heart Attack by 50%
-
Dec 3, 2009, 8:50 am
Time-Lapse Video Showing Gial Cell Movement
-
Dec 3, 2009, 8:07 am
Mall Santas Are Concerned About Swine Flu
- More Videos
RSS Feeds