PIA05596: Savoring Neopolitan
 Target Name:  Mars
 Is a satellite of:  Sol (our sun)
 Mission:  Mars Exploration Rover (MER)
 Spacecraft:  Opportunity
 Instrument:  Hazcam
 Product Size:  3200 x 3209 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  JPL
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA05596.tif (6.003 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA05596.jpg (505 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:

figure 1 for PIA05596
Figure 1

This image from the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity's front hazard-avoidance camera shows the rover at its Sol 53 (March 17, 2004) location within the "Eagle Crater" landing site. Dubbed "Neopolitan," this location has three different soil patches: a very light unit, a dark unit, and an airbag bounce mark. Scientists are imaging each of these units as part of a crater soil survey. They hope to better understand the origin of the soils they see in the crater and the relationship of the soils to the rocks in Opportunity ledge. This image was taken on sol 52 of Opportunity's journey (March 16, 2004).

The Ice Cream Trio
In Figure 1 above, the light soil unit, seen on the left, is a microscopic imager target dubbed "Vanilla." The dark soil unit on the right is a target dubbed "Cookies 'n' Cream.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Washington University (St. Louis)

Image Addition Date:
2004-03-19