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PIA00647: Forward Ramp Deploy
 Target Name:  Mars
 Is a satellite of:  Sol (our sun)
 Mission:  Mars Pathfinder (MPF)
 Spacecraft:  Mars Pathfinder Lander
 Instrument:  Imager for Mars Pathfinder 
 Product Size:  640 x 480 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  JPL
 Producer ID:  P48876 MRPS81092
 Addition Date:  1997-07-09
 Primary Data Set:  MARS_PATHFINDER_PAGE
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA00647.tif (904.2 kB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA00647.jpg (40.87 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:

Mars Pathfinder's forward rover ramp can be seen successfully unfurled in this color image, taken at the end of Sol 2 by the Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP). This ramp was not used for the deployment of the microrover Sojourner, which occurred at the end of Sol 2. When this image was taken, Sojourner was still latched to one of the lander's petals, waiting for the command sequence that would execute its descent off of the lander's petal. The image helped Pathfinder scientists determine whether to deploy the rover using the forward or backward ramps and the nature of the first rover traverse. The metallic object at lower left is part of the lander's low-gain antenna. The square at the end of the ramp is one of the spacecraft's magnetic targets.

Mars Pathfinder is the second in NASA's Discovery program of low-cost spacecraft with highly focused science goals. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, developed and manages the Mars Pathfinder mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. JPL is an operating division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). The Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP) was developed by the University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory under contract to JPL. Peter Smith is the Principal Investigator.

Photojournal note: Sojourner spent 83 days of a planned seven-day mission exploring the Martian terrain, acquiring images, and taking chemical, atmospheric and other measurements. The final data transmission received from Pathfinder was at 10:23 UTC on September 27, 1997. Although mission managers tried to restore full communications during the following five months, the successful mission was terminated on March 10, 1998.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL

Image Addition Date:
1997-07-09