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Pancam Multispectral Imaging Results from the Opportunity Rover at Meridiani Planum
J. F. Bell, III,1*S. W. Squyres,1R. E. Arvidson,2H. M. Arneson,1D. Bass,3W. Calvin,4W. H. Farrand,5W. Goetz,6M. Golombek,3R. Greeley,7J. Grotzinger,8E. Guinness,2A. G. Hayes,1M. Y. H. Hubbard,1K. E. Herkenhoff,9M. J. Johnson,1J. R. Johnson,9J. Joseph,1K. M. Kinch,10M. T. Lemmon,11R. Li,12M. B. Madsen,6J. N. Maki,3M. Malin,13E. McCartney,1S. McLennan,14H. Y. McSween, Jr.,15D. W. Ming,16R. V. Morris,16E. Z. Noe Dobrea,1T. J. Parker,3J. Proton,1J. W. Rice, Jr.,7F. Seelos,2J. M. Soderblom,1L. A. Soderblom,9J. N. Sohl-Dickstein,1R. J. Sullivan,1C. M. Weitz,17M. J. Wolff5
Panoramic Camera (Pancam) images from Meridiani Planum reveala low-albedo, generally flat, and relatively rock-free surface.Within and around impact craters and fractures, laminated outcroprocks with higher albedo are observed. Fine-grained materialsinclude dark sand, bright ferric iron–rich dust, angularrock clasts, and millimeter-size spheroidal granules that areeroding out of the laminated rocks. Spectra of sand, clasts,and one dark plains rock are consistent with mafic silicatessuch as pyroxene and olivine. Spectra of both the spherulesand the laminated outcrop materials indicate the presence ofcrystalline ferric oxides or oxyhydroxides. Atmospheric observationsshow a steady decline in dust opacity during the mission. Astronomicalobservations captured solar transits by Phobos and Deimos andtime-lapse observations of sunsets.
1 Department of Astronomy, Cornell University, Ithaca NY 14853, USA. 2 Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA. 3 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA. 4 Department of Geological Sciences, University of Nevada, Reno, NV 89501, USA. 5 Space Science Institute, Boulder, CO 80301, USA. 6 University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark. 7 Department of Geological Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA. 8 Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA. 9 U.S. Geological Survey, Flagstaff, AZ 86001, USA. 10 Aarhus University, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark. 11 Department of Atmospheric Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA. 12 Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Geodetic Science, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA. 13 Malin Space Science Systems Inc., San Diego, CA 92191, USA. 14 Department of Geosciences, State University of New York, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA. 15 Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA. 16 NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX 77058, USA. 17 Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA.
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: jfb8{at}cornell.edu
Spectral Reflectance and Morphologic Correlations in Eastern Terra Meridiani, Mars.
R. E. Arvidson, F. Poulet, J.-P. Bibring, M. Wolff, A. Gendrin, R. V. Morris, J. J. Freeman, Y. Langevin, N. Mangold, and G. Bellucci (2005)
Science
307, 1591-1594
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The Opportunity Rover's Athena Science Investigation at Meridiani Planum, Mars.
S. W. Squyres, R. E. Arvidson, J. F. Bell III, J. Bruckner, N. A. Cabrol, W. Calvin, M. H. Carr, P. R. Christensen, B. C. Clark, L. Crumpler, et al. (2004)
Science
306, 1698-1703
|Abstract »|Full Text »|PDF »
In Situ Evidence for an Ancient Aqueous Environment at Meridiani Planum, Mars.
S. W. Squyres, J. P. Grotzinger, R. E. Arvidson, J. F. Bell III, W. Calvin, P. R. Christensen, B. C. Clark, J. A. Crisp, W. H. Farrand, K. E. Herkenhoff, et al. (2004)
Science
306, 1709-1714
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Soils of Eagle Crater and Meridiani Planum at the Opportunity Rover Landing Site.
L. A. Soderblom, R. C. Anderson, R. E. Arvidson, J. F. Bell III, N. A. Cabrol, W. Calvin, P. R. Christensen, B. C. Clark, T. Economou, B. L. Ehlmann, et al. (2004)
Science
306, 1723-1726
|Abstract »|Full Text »|PDF »
Evidence from Opportunity's Microscopic Imager for Water on Meridiani Planum.
K. E. Herkenhoff, S. W. Squyres, R. Arvidson, D. S. Bass, J. F. Bell III, P. Bertelsen, B. L. Ehlmann, W. Farrand, L. Gaddis, R. Greeley, et al. (2004)
Science
306, 1727-1730
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Localization and Physical Property Experiments Conducted by Opportunity at Meridiani Planum.
R. E. Arvidson, R. C. Anderson, P. Bartlett, J. F. Bell III, P. R. Christensen, P. Chu, K. Davis, B. L. Ehlmann, M. P. Golombek, S. Gorevan, et al. (2004)
Science
306, 1730-1733
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Mineralogy at Meridiani Planum from the Mini-TES Experiment on the Opportunity Rover.
P. R. Christensen, M. B. Wyatt, T. D. Glotch, A. D. Rogers, S. Anwar, R. E. Arvidson, J. L. Bandfield, D. L. Blaney, C. Budney, W. M. Calvin, et al. (2004)
Science
306, 1733-1739
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Atmospheric Imaging Results from the Mars Exploration Rovers: Spirit and Opportunity.
M. T. Lemmon, M. J. Wolff, M. D. Smith, R. T. Clancy, D. Banfield, G. A. Landis, A. Ghosh, P. H. Smith, N. Spanovich, B. Whitney, et al. (2004)
Science
306, 1753-1756
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