Phoenix Mars Lander Takes a Look Around [Slide Show]
Images from Mars's newest inhabitant document its quest for water
Phoenix Mars Lander Takes a Look Around [Slide Show]
- VERTICAL HORIZON: This approximate-color view of the terrain northwest of Phoenix Mars Lander, obtained by the craft's Surface Stereo Imager (SSI), shows polygonal cracking thought to represent seasonal thawing and freezing of subsurface ice... NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University
- PHOENIX "WORKSPACE": This terrain model showing the workspace, or area accessible by, Phoenix's Robotic Arm has been color coded by depth (red = low; blue = high) with a model of the lander for context. Color-coding was derived from the depth perception feature on the craft's Surface Stereo Imager (SSI)... NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University/NASA Ames
- FISH-EYE VIEW: This mosaic, forming a 360-degree polar projection of the terrain surrounding the Phoenix Mars Lander, was generated from images collected by the probe's Surface Stereo Imager (SSI) instrument during the first three days of the mission... NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University
- MARS TIME CAPSULE: An American flag and a mini-DVD on the deck of Phoenix Mars Lander. The mini-DVD from the Planetary Society contains a message to future Martian explorers, science fiction stories and art inspired by the Red Planet as well as the names of more than a quarter-million earthlings... NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
- BIOBARRIER: In one of the few glitches so far for NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander mission, a shiny, protective film failed to completely unwrap from around the elbow joint of the craft's 7.7-foot robotic arm, shown here in its stowed configuration on days one [ left ] and two [ right ] of the mission... NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
