Looking forward, looking back. I’m leaving Mars’ Naukluft Plateau, and heading higher on Mt. Sharp.
I’ve analyzed my 12th drilled sample of Mars. Each drill hole is about 0.6 inch (1.6 centimeters)—slightly smaller than a U.S. dime. These images are raw color as taken by the camera at then end of my robotic arm.
The “Oudam” sample came from mudstone bedrock. Read more at http://go.nasa.gov/1UPba3F
Try driving on Mars: https://eyes.nasa.gov/curiosity/
Like it? Last day to vote for it in the Webby Awards: http://bit.ly/1VEE0tn
(Source: eyes.nasa.gov)
He wields a laser, not a lance. France honored my ChemCam instrument lead with knighthood for his work bringing together the French and American scientific communities. 🇫🇷 🇺🇸
More from Los Alamos National Laboratory: http://1.usa.gov/25XRKCH
The Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument provides information about the chemical composition of targets by zapping them with laser pulses and taking spectrometer readings of the induced sparks. It also takes detailed images through a telescope.
Here are a couple examples:
(Source: 1.usa.gov)
Join my #JourneyToMars with astronaut Buzz Aldrin and mobility engineer Erisa via @nasa #HoloLens. Info: http://go.nasa.gov/1RqHVqk
Coming soon to @nasa‘s Kennedy Space Center
(Source: go.nasa.gov)
Thanks to new technology, we can take a 360-degree tour of the 1997 Pathfinder mission landing site, including Sojourner, the first Mars rover. Check out this interactive YouTube panorama, and then…
…keep scrolling to find out more about each point of interest, how the Pathfinder mission compares to “The Martian” and NASA’s real Journey to Mars.
“Yogi” is a meter-size rock about 5 meters northwest of the Mars Pathfinder lander and the second rock visited by the Sojourner Rover’s alpha proton X-ray spectrometer (APXS) instrument. This mosaic shows super resolution techniques applied to help to address questions about the texture of this rock and what it might tell us about how it came to be.
The Twin Peaks are modest-size hills to the southwest of the Mars Pathfinder landing site. They were discovered on the first panoramas taken by the IMP camera on the July 4, 1997, and subsequently identified in Viking Orbiter images taken over 20 years ago. They’re about 30-35 meters tall.
“Barnacle Bill” is a small rock immediately west-northwest of the Mars Pathfinder lander and was the first rock visited by the Sojourner Rover’s alpha proton X-ray spectrometer (APXS) instrument. If you have some old-school red-cyan glasses, put them on and see this pic in eye-popping 3-D.
The Rock Garden is a cluster of large, angular rocks tilted in a downstream direction from ancient floods on Mars. The rocky surface is comprised of materials washed down from the highlands and deposited in this ancient outflow channel.
MOAR INFO
Pathfinder Lander & Sojourner Rover
This vista was stitched together from many images taken in 1997 by Pathfinder.
Pathfinder and Sojourner figure into Mark Watney’s quest for survival on the Red Planet in the book and movie, “The Martian.” See JPL’s role in making “The Martian” a reality: http://go.nasa.gov/1McRrXw and discover nine real NASA technologies depicted in “The Martian”: http://go.nasa.gov/1QiyUiC.
So what about the real-life “Journey to Mars”? NASA is developing the capabilities needed to send humans to Mars in the 2030s. Discover more at http://nasa.gov/journeytomars and don’t forget to visit me when you make it to the Red Planet. Until then, stay curious and I’ll see you online.
Ahoy, space pirates! Explore the 1997 landing site of NASA’s Pathfinder mission with your mouse or mobile device. This 360-degree view includes the lander’s companion rover, Sojourner, (first Mars rover ever!) and top science targets.
I know not all Web browsers support viewing 360-degree videos and images. (This video best viewed in Chrome.) You can see and download the static panorama at http://go.nasa.gov/1TcjxuN.
Here comes the Hotstepper: Working my way through challenging Mars terrain; careful to minimize wheel wear.
(Source: mars.jpl.nasa.gov)
Right Round: Take a #360video tour of Mars’ Namib Dune in 4K.
Can’t wait to share my science results from Namib Dune; but first, let me take a selfie.
Full res photo: http://go.nasa.gov/1VvIA9f
(Source: go.nasa.gov)
You like dune buggies? Everybody likes dune buggies. #Selfie at Mars’ Namib Dune. Science team’s full panorama soon.
(Source: mars.jpl.nasa.gov)
The rover abides. Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity landed 12 years ago this week. Science continues: http://go.nasa.gov/1PNUdEo
(Source: go.nasa.gov)
I love sharing granular data from my mission. Usually, it’s not quite this literal.
New Mars close-ups: http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/multimedia/raw/?s#/?slide=1228
Blog info from the team: http://mars.nasa.gov/…/mars-rover-curiosity-mission-updates/
Objects may be larger than they appear. Looking at the leeward side of Namib Dune on Mars.
Info: http://go.nasa.gov/1OHNGk7
Hi-res: http://www.gigapan.com/gigapans/182795
Image credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
(Source: go.nasa.gov)
From Mars, with love. Happy New Year! May your next trip around the sun be a good one.
(Source: mars.jpl.nasa.gov)
I’m standing at the base of a Martian dune… Parts of it are two stories tall.
(Source: mars.jpl.nasa.gov)