PIA00976: MPF Lander Measured Surface Pressure
 Target Name:  Mars
 Is a satellite of:  Sol (our sun)
 Mission:  Mars Pathfinder (MPF)
 Spacecraft:  Mars Pathfinder Lander
 Instrument:  Atmospheric Structure / Meteorology Instrument 
 Product Size:  613 x 467 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  Arizona State University
 Producer ID:  MRPS85023
 Addition Date:  1997-10-14
 Primary Data Set:  MARS_PATHFINDER_PAGE
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA00976.tif (19.31 kB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA00976.jpg (68.86 kB)

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Original Caption Released with Image:

Here is a comparison of the most recent 24-hour met sessions. Note the general trend of increasing pressure with time into the mission. This indicates that the South polar cap is reducing, freeing CO2 into the atmosphere. Also note small pressure features around noon, which we think are "dust-devils."

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 a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).

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/ASU

Image Addition Date:
1997-10-14