Make money with Paypal through Surveyscout
Click here for good mars missions
information.
Mars Rover Mission is a
web site all about The Mars Spirit Rover Mission. This site's mission is to give you
information about Mars the red planet in our solar system which we are now exploring. You
will find black and white and color pictures of the Spirit Rover on this page as well as
articles and picture galleries of the latest pictures to be taken from the Spirit Rovers.
Is there Water on Mars? The pictures from the Spirit Rover Mission may help us determine
if present or past life on Mars is a reality or not? We all hope to know the answers to
these questions soon. In the meantime we invite you to enjoy these in-depth pictures of
Mars and it's topography from the Mars Spirit Rover Mission. This page will soon have more
information and nasa pics as well as more links to mars mission sites.
Click on the Spirit
Rover pictures to enlarge them to their full size
For the full collection of Spirit Rover Nasa Pics click here.

www.populationprayer.com
PASADENA, Calif. -- Scientists are having a "field day" on Mars, ogling a
staggering new view of the Red Planet revealed through the camera eyes of NASA's Spirit
rover.
Sitting on its landing perch within Gusev Crater, Spirit used its Panoramic Camera, PanCam
for short, to reveal the martian landscape to be a colorful, dazzling locale ripe for
exploration.
This is the first color image of Mars taken by the panoramic camera on the Mars
Exploration Rover Spirit. It is the highest resolution image ever taken on the surface of
another planet. Image credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell University
The smooth surfaces of angular and rounded rocks may have been polished by wind-blown
debris, scientists say. The picture was taken by Spirit's panoramic camera.
This Spirit image highlights streaks or tails of loose debris in the martian soil, which
reveal the direction of prevailing winds.
Calling card: Marks in the martian soil (upper right) were made by the rover's airbags
during final deflation and retraction.
Make money
online with Paypal through Surveyscout
a mission to mars web site sponsor
The initial view released, a mosaic of 12 separate pictures, was taken from the front
of the rover. At 12 million pixels, the image and the rest that followed, are the highest
resolution pictures ever obtained from Mars. It is a 45-degree field of view of the
terrain in Gusev Crater.
The color vista shows the surface to be a geological paradise, rich in rock and soil
variations. Image details of the robot's neighborhood are of far greater clarity than
photos taken previously by the Viking and Mars Pathfinder cameras.
Scientists were elated at the quality of Spirit's camera-clicking job. The imagery was
shown today at an early morning press briefing held here at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
(JPL).
Shock and awe
Jim Bell, Payload Element Lead for the PanCam, said he's in "shock and awe"
after seeing the first color images that his camera equipment has taken.
"These pictures are the highest resolution
highest detail every obtained"
from Mars, Bell said. "It's spectacular, but to really do it justice, you have to
zoom in and explore all the incredible detail."
The rocks in view, Bell said, are different in size and shape. "It's a wonderful mix
of smooth and angular rocks."
"And this is just the tip of iceberg, in terms of what you're about to see,"
Steve Squyres, principal investigator for Spirit's science package added. "This is
just a tiny taste of what's to come."
Because Gusev Crater is a windy area, Mother Nature has helped dust off the surface of
exposed rocks, Squyres said.
"I believe as we get to know our new home in Gusev crater a lot better over the next
few days, our picture of what's going on may change dramatically," Squyres remarked,
pointing out that there are far fewer big rocks are at the Gusev Crater, compared to Mars
Pathfinder and Viking landing sites.
Early black and white pictures whetted the appetite of scientists, but the new sweeping
color panorama will help chart exactly where the six-wheeled robot should first be sent.
Make money
online with Paypal through Surveyscout
Presidential call
Prior to the press conference announcing the new images, the team received a telephone
call from President George W. Bush congratulating them for their accomplishment.
Charles Elachi, JPL director, said the President congratulated the team, thanking them for
"daring to be great."
The President, Elachi recalled, cited the landing of Spirit as "a proud moment for
all Americans," and said the mission was an inspiration for the next generation of
explorers.
Jennifer Trosper, Mission Manager for Surface Operations of the rover, invited the
President to come to JPL and drive the vehicle, "but very carefully."
Impromptu science experiment
In what could be judged as an impromptu science experiment done on Mars, Squyres said the
retraction of Spirit's airbags have uncovered "bizarre" subsurface material.
The "weird stuff", Squyres said, appears to be "strangely cohesive."
"We don't understand it
we're dying to get a close-up look," Squyres added.
Bell told SPACE.com that many on the team are hungry to make a higher-resolution scan of
the "un-marsed" material before the rover drives away.
It is conceivable, Bell said, that this newly exposed mystery material -- never seeing
daylight on Mars -- could become altered given its exposure ultraviolet light streaming
down on the surface.
Designated driver
Once Spirit is released from its landing platform, the rover -- similar in size to a
riding mower - will be the designated driver on Mars. Once loaded with driving
instructions, the robot will autonomously steer itself across Gusev Crater.
Trosper characterized the landscape as "a bumpy race track."
Make money
online with Paypal through Surveyscout
When Spirit begins wheeling about Mars, the camera system will be some 5 feet (1.5 meters)
above the ground -- providing a view similar to what a space-suited human might see
standing on Mars.
More mars rover and nasa pics soon, and mission to mars information.
Make
money online with Paypal through Surveyscout
|