Image Fest #3
Tuesday, March 18th, 2008Here are 40 RGB color images from the 1500 – 1600 orbit range of MRO.
There are, as always, many magnificent images here. Some of the noteworthy observations are:
PSP_001521_2025 and PSP_001501_2280: On the HiRISE web site you can see diagrams made by Tim Parker show the locations of various parts (lander, backshell, heatshield or parachute) for Viking Lander 1 and Viking Lander 2. It’s possible they aren’t in the color strip (I haven’t found them)!
PSP_001508_1245 and PSP_001510_2195: These two exhibit a “glow” pattern of saturated pixels due to high TDI (Time Delay Integration) settings on the blue-green CCDs. (All of the exposure settings are chosen for each observation based on a photometric model of the scene).
PSP_001538_2035: This is a rim-to-rim section across a crater called Tooting that is about 30 kilometers in diameter. It’s also interesting to note how the altitude of the rims, when combined with the large off-nadir roll angle (23 degrees), leads to an oddly bowed geometric projection. But it is correct; as the terrain rose, fell, and rose again from HiRISE’s angled point of view, the center of the ground track deviated slightly east or west from a true great-circle line.
PSP_001558_1325 and PSP_001593_2635: These dune fields are striking, forming incredible patterns.
PSP_001582_2245: Looking like a super-sized area of dried mud, the polygonal cracks in this image are amazing.
Updated (2008-Apr-10)
