Red Mars from Spirit
Explanation:
Rocks are strewn across the broad, flat Gusev crater floor in
this sharp color picture
from NASA's
Spirit rover.
Recorded by the
rover's panoramic camera,
the picture is part of Spirit's first color image of
Mars - the highest resolution picture yet taken on the surface
of another planet.
Already revealing alluring and
perplexing
details of an apparently
windswept
plane thought to be an
ancient lake bed,
this stunning view represents only a small fraction
of the color image data mission scientists expect to be
transmitted in the coming days.
As the robotic Spirit
rover
is preparing to stand up, roll off the lander, and
explore
the geology of the crater floor,
NASA has announced plans to rename the landing site the
Columbia
Memorial Station in honor of
the astronauts lost
in the Columbia space shuttle accident.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
