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MARS: Opportunity Arrives at Endurance Crater! (Mind-blowing geology evident)
NASA/JPL ^
Posted on 05/03/2004 5:18:46 PM PDT by ElkGroveDan
This 180-degree view from the navigation camera on the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity is the first look inside "Endurance Crater." The view is a cylindrical projection constructed from four images. The crater is about 130 meters (about 430 feet) in diameter.
Medium Image (click here)
Large Image (click here)
3-D Image (click here)
3-D Medium Image (click here)
3-D Large Image (click here)
TOPICS: Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: mars
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It looks like they are going to be dealing with some pretty steep slopes there. What a shame if it turns out that much of the layering is of reach of the Opportunity Rover.
To: Phil V.; Godebert
ping
To: ElkGroveDan
I think the far side probably looks a bit steeper than it actually is. And the crater as a whole is a bit smaller than it looks without anything to provide scale...
Looks like they may have access to rock units below those of Eagle crater.
3
posted on
05/03/2004 5:21:45 PM PDT
by
John H K
To: ElkGroveDan
Wondering why the rocks are laying flat in the foreground. Is the near lip of the crater ahead, or is the robot inside the crater?
4
posted on
05/03/2004 5:24:03 PM PDT
by
RightWhale
(Destroy the dark; restore the light)
To: ElkGroveDan
Time to send in the geologists.
5
posted on
05/03/2004 5:26:58 PM PDT
by
cripplecreek
(you tell em i'm commin.... and hells commin with me.)
To: ElkGroveDan
What is that object located at about 168 X -30?
6
posted on
05/03/2004 5:27:05 PM PDT
by
BykrBayb
(5 minutes of prayer for Terri, every day at 11 a.m. EDT, until she's safe.)
To: ElkGroveDan
Beautiful! Thanks for posting. I forgot to check for Mars news today. Looks like it should be an easy drive down into Endurance and later out. I was worried because the far wall looked so steep from a distance.
To: RightWhale
She's looking right over the edge into the crater.
With layered rock, the whole surface tends to slump to fit the terrain as it erodes away below. You are in fact looking at what was once the bottom of the Meridiani Lake/Swamp that Opportunity has already identified, as it slumps away into the crater below.
To: RightWhale
She's looking right over the edge into the crater.
With layered rock, the whole surface tends to slump to fit the terrain as it erodes away below. You are in fact looking at what was once the bottom of the Meridiani Lake/Swamp that Opportunity has already identified, as it slumps away into the crater below.
To: ElkGroveDan
And off to the right of that, and down a little is something that looks like a pipe buried in the ground.
Can I get some Twilight Zone music here?
10
posted on
05/03/2004 5:32:01 PM PDT
by
BykrBayb
(5 minutes of prayer for Terri, every day at 11 a.m. EDT, until she's safe.)
To: RightWhale
Looks like those old Roman mosaic floors. I think we're in someone's den here!
11
posted on
05/03/2004 5:32:13 PM PDT
by
Arkie2
To: ElkGroveDan
Looking at the far side where there is a considerable overhang, would the near side look about the same?
12
posted on
05/03/2004 5:32:30 PM PDT
by
RightWhale
(Destroy the dark; restore the light)
To: Arkie2
It does. All those rocks laying flat like tiles. Seems like some would have some tilt unless there hadn't been any disturbance in the past.
13
posted on
05/03/2004 5:34:13 PM PDT
by
RightWhale
(Destroy the dark; restore the light)
To: RightWhale
Looking at the far side where there is a considerable overhang, would the near side look about the same? No I think the far side is definately steeper. The top image is a wide-angle composite. The image in #1 gives you abetter sense of the relative slopes.
I hate to be a naysayer, but I don't think they are going to be able to get real close to the very best looking layers -- what a shame. Still, a whole bunch of illuminating geology is bound to go on here in the next few weeks.
To: LibWhacker
bttt
15
posted on
05/03/2004 5:35:54 PM PDT
by
Mr. K
(ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,I stole this cuz its funny,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø))
To: ElkGroveDan
Okay. If they drive around the crater they would be able to map it all out 3D in good detail from images. Even if they don't go down inside because they might not be able to climb out they will get good mechanicals. Would be interesting to test rock composition deep in the excavation.
16
posted on
05/03/2004 5:44:55 PM PDT
by
RightWhale
(Destroy the dark; restore the light)
To: ElkGroveDan
What the heck is in the center of the crater, a giant Martian amoeba???
17
posted on
05/03/2004 5:46:19 PM PDT
by
mikegi
To: RightWhale
Agreed, they can do a lot of visual geology, and one of the spectrometers is designed for imaging at a distance. They just need to take some layer samples in various places that they can get to, and the rest of it should fall into place.
Keep in mind that there should be exposed geology on the OUTSIDE of the crater that they can drive down and examine -- especially on that far side, behind the crater wall that we are looking at here.
To: mikegi
What the heck is in the center of the crater, a giant Martian amoeba??? Wind-blown sand dunes.
To: mikegi
Really interesting sand dunes....guess the wind does get down inside the crater....looks like sand/dust blown in from outside the crater.
20
posted on
05/03/2004 5:51:31 PM PDT
by
John H K
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