Mars Picture Of The Week

Watch this space every week for new Mars imagery. Five spacecraft are operating at Mars. They are the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity, the Odyssey orbiter and  European Mars Express spacecraft. The new Phoenix lander is also set for launch Aug. 3. 

This week's image is from the University of Arizona/Ball Aerospace  MRO HiRise imaging system. It  shows highly layered canyon terrain at Nilo Syrtis, a prime landing site candidate for the Mars Science Laboratory rover set for launch in 2009. Enlarge the picture to its maximum and you will see canyon terrain worthy of a U. S. national park.  The site is at 29.3 deg. north latitude and 73.3 deg. east longitude. The spacecraft image resolution of this area shows objects as small as 87 cm. (34 in.)  diameter.   The area has terrain similar to the water carved canyon areas of Utah, making it a candidate for finding evidence of past or current Martian life

-- Craig Covault, senior editor, Aviation Week & Space Technology

Comments

[Gaetano Marano - Italy]

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amazing Mars 3-D images to see with RED-BLUE glasses:

marsrovers.nasa.gov/gallery/3d/

simkin.asu.edu/geowall/mars/

research.microsoft.com/~antcrim/mars_web_MSRC/mars.aspx

>>> ADD www. to these links

science.widener.edu/mars3d/

rainbowsymphony.com/mars3dgallery/index.htm

rainbowsymphony.com/mars3dgallery/pages/Mars_3DAdirondack3.htm

rainbowsymphony.com/mars3dgallery/pages/Mars_3DLandscape3.htm

rainbowsymphony.com/mars3dgallery/pages/Mars_3DLandscape4.htm

rainbowsymphony.com/mars3dgallery/pages/Mars_3DLandscape5.htm

rainbowsymphony.com/mars3dgallery/pages/rocks.htm

stereoscopy.com/mars/

freewebs.com/thombone/

to best view the 3-D images' effect you must wait a few seconds to help your eyes find their right focus

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about the "overweighted Orion" and the "underpowered Ares-I" news...

THIS new, smaller, up to 4 mT lighther and SAFER Launch Abort System (LAS) could save the Orion/Ares-I project and the astronauts' lives:

http://www.gaetanomarano.it/articles/020newLAS.html

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[Gaetano Marano - Italy]

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end of links cutted by the blogs' software:

~antcrim/mars_web_MSRC/mars.aspx

Mars_3DAdirondack3.htm

Mars_3DLandscape3.htm

Mars_3DLandscape4.htm

Mars_3DLandscape5.htm

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