PIA11719: Phoenix Lander Self Portrait on Mars, Vertical Projection
 Target Name:  Mars
 Is a satellite of:  Sol (our sun)
 Mission:  Phoenix
 Spacecraft:  Phoenix Mars Lander
 Instrument:  Surface Stereo Imager (SSI)
 Product Size:  3000 x 3000 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  University of Arizona
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA11719.tif (27 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA11719.jpg (1.184 MB)

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:

This view is a vertical projection that combines hundreds of exposures taken by the Surface Stereo Imager camera on NASA's Mars Phoenix Lander and projects them as if looking down from above.

The black circle is where the camera itself is mounted on the lander, out of view in images taken by the camera. North is toward the top of the image.

This view comprises more than 100 different Stereo Surface Imager pointings, with images taken through three different filters at each pointing. The images were taken throughout the period from the 13th Martian day, or sol, after landing to the 47th sol (June 5 through July 12, 2008). The lander's Robotic Arm appears cut off in this mosaic view because component images were taken when the arm was out of the frame.

The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver.

Photojournal Note: As planned, the Phoenix lander, which landed May 25, 2008 23:53 UTC, ended communications in November 2008, about six months after landing, when its solar panels ceased operating in the dark Martian winter.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

Image Addition Date:
2008-12-15