Another image from Opportunity showing some of the heavily-textured rocks ringing ConcepciĆ³n crater in fascinating detail, color-calibrated by Stuart Atkinson for an approximation of Martian natural lighting. You can clearly see here the layered structure of the rocks, their angular shapes, the interesting “crust” that coats their sides as well as the small stone “berries”…
Tag: rover
Head for the Hills!
…or, in Opportunity’s case, away from the Hills. The “Chocolate Hills“, that is…a pair of rocks on the rim of the rover’s latest exploration target, ConcepciĆ³n crater. Opportunity has spent a couple of weeks investigating them and other rocks in another fascinating side trip on its journey across the Meridian Plains. It is now moving…
Work Well Done
A poignant entry on xkcd.com, a webcomic by Randall Munroe. This is based on the recent news that the rover named Spirit will now officially be a “stationary science platform”. After repeated attempts to dislodge it from its current location, wheels hopelessly embedded in soft sand in a locale called “Troy”, the decision was made…
Seeking Shelter
The exploration rover Opportunity has identified what seems to be another ferrous extraplanetary visitor resting on the sands of Meridiani Plains. The 19-inch-long meteorite, shown here, has been dubbed “Shelter Island” by the MER team. Opportunity’s tire tracks are visible in the upper left. Opportunity spent six weeks in September and October investigating “Block Island”,…
A Dusty Sunset
The Spirit rover, still mired in the soft sand, recently took a series of photos showing the sun setting into a dusty Martian sky. I combined the raw images here to create a short animation. Yes, Spirit is still stuck near Home Plate. Its power levels are good but the rover team has not tried…
Martian Lomography
Although not particularly exciting in theme, I like this image a lot for its light and shadow composition. Taken on June 23 by the Spirit rover, this false-color view of the surrounding ground is nicely lit by a setting sun that also creates a glare in the lens. It’s not unlike photos I sometimes get…
Revisiting Victoria
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter captured this image of Victoria Crater on July 18, 2009, with the onboard HiRISE high-definition camera. Victoria Crater was the site of the Opportunity rover’s 2006-2007 investigation. Craters like these are great targets for the rover team because the exposed rock along their edges offers valuable information about Mars’ geologic history….
Around the Block
“Block Island”, the recently-discovered meteorite resting on the Martian sand dunes, is shown here in a false-color raw image by the Opportunity rover. Measuring nearly 2 feet across, it is the largest meteorite found so far by the Mars Exploration Rovers. Its metallic surface, pocked and pitted by erosion and its collision course through the…
The Iron Giant
“It’s big,” said Mars Exploration Rover team member Ray Arvidson. And at approximately the size of a beach ball, about 2 feet wide, it is the largest meteorite fragment found so far on Mars. The Opportunity team spotted the rock, now known as “Block Island”, during the rover’s travels across the dunes of Meridiani Planum….
It Came From Outer Space
The Opportunity rover has come across a two-foot-wide rock sitting on the Martian sands that may very well be a meteorite. The rock, nicknamed “Block Island”, was spotted by the Mars Exploration Rover team on July 18. They had the rover reverse course and drive over to it to get a better look. The image…
Mars Rocks!
I don’t care how commonplace images like these have become over the past decade…it still fascinates me to look at photos of the rocky Martian landscape. Rugged, barren and empty as it is, it’s another planet. Every hill, every rock, every sand dune has never been touched by a person, or perhaps even any living…
When the Wind Blows
This 20-frame animation shows dust-laden winds blowing across the Martian plains near Spirit’s current positionā¦which is the same position she’s been in for several weeks since becoming mired in the soft sand on the western edge of “Home Plate”. Regardless of her predicament, Spirit’s energy levels are in good supply due to these same winds…
Lights in the Dark 