PDS logoPlanetary Data System
PDS Information
Find a Node - Use these links to navigate to any of the 8 publicly accessible PDS Nodes.

This bar indicates that you are within the PDS enterprise which includes 6 science discipline nodes and 2 support nodes which are overseen by the Project Management Office at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). Each node is led by an expert in the subject discipline, supported by an advisory group of other practitioners of that discipline, and subject to selection and approval under a regular NASA Research Announcement.
Click here to return to the Photojournal Home Page Click here to view a list of Photojournal Image Galleries Photojournal_inner_header
Latest Images  |  Spacecraft & Technology  |  Animations  |  Space Images App  |  Feedback  |  Photojournal Search  

PIA04746: Boulders on Phobos
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor highlights the surface of Mars' moon, Phobos. Several large boulders are present. Most of the boulders may have been ejected from the largest impact crater on Phobos, Stickney.
 Target Name:  Mars
 Is a satellite of:  Sol (our sun)
 Mission:  Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) 
 Spacecraft:  Mars Global Surveyor Orbiter
 Instrument:  Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) 
 Product Size:  843 x 1265 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA04746.tif (976.1 kB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA04746.jpg (108.9 kB)  

Click on the image above to download a moderately sized image in JPEG format (possibly reduced in size from original)

Original Caption Released with Image:

MGS MOC Release No. MOC2-485, 16 September 2003

In 1998, the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) spacecraft made four passes by the innermost of the two martian satellites, Phobos. The fourth pass, made just over 5 years ago on 12 September 1998, offered the Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) the opportunity to acquire the highest resolution images of the moon, ever. This wonderful 5-year-old picture highlights the surface of Phobos. Several large boulders can be seen, including a very large one near the center that is about 85 meters (~280 feet) in diameter. Most of the boulders may have been ejected from the largest impact crater on Phobos, Stickney. Sunlight illuminates the scene from the left/lower left.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Image Addition Date:
2003-09-17