Mars Curiosity Detector for CheMin
January 9, 2013
This charged couple device (CCD) is part of the Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin) instrument on NASA's Curiosity rover. When CheMin directs X-rays at a sample of soil, this imager, which is the size of a postage stamp, detects both the position and energy of each X-ray photon. The technology in this CCD was originally developed by NASA and has become widely used in commercial digital cameras.
Image credit: NASA/Ames/JPL-Caltech
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Technology Internet, Spacecraft, Space technology, Spaceflight, Environment, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA, Mars exploration, Mars Science Laboratory, Astrobiology, Unmanned spacecraft, Mars Exploration Rover
