c.m. rodrigue, 2015 geography, csulb mars: sources of data from the robotic missions ii geography...

C.M. Rodrigue, 2015Geography, CSULB

Mars: Sources of Data from the Robotic Missions II

Geography 441/541S/15

Dr. Christine M. Rodrigue


Mars: Data from Robotic Missions

NASA Viking 1976-1982 Viking orbiter instrumentation

Visual Imaging Subsystem (VIR): Source of images I showed you earlier

Stereo telescopic TV cameras with 6 filters to create images in one of 5 visible light bandwidth ranges or the entire VL range

Used in geologic mapping, atmospheric studies, identifying safe and interesting landing sites, and to correlate with lander data



NASA Viking 1976-1982 Viking orbiter instrumentation

• Infrared Thermal Mapper (IRTM) multichannel radiometer– 4 telescopes, each with 7 IR detectors, aimed parallel to VIS– Measured temperatures in the atmosphere and on the surface

• Orbiter Radio Science– S-band and X-band radio (Doppler and time-of-flight) used for

orbital position readings, Mars gravitational field studies, interplanetary plasma studies, solar corona studies

– UHF (381 MHz) lander-to-orbiter communications, exploited also for occultation studies of the vertical pressure and temperature structure of the Martian atmosphere

• Mars Atmospheric Water Detector (MAWD)– Infrared grating spectrometer measuring reflected sunlight in

the wavelengths that water is known to absorb– Looking for that absorption yields micrometers of precipitable

water vapor



NASA Viking 1976-1982 Viking lander

Lander locations chosen “on the fly” on the basis of images from the orbiters

Lander 1 sent to 22.54°N, 48.23°W: Chryse Planitia Lander 2 sent to 44°N, 226°W: Utopia Planitia



NASA Viking 1976-1982 Viking lander instrumentation: fully loaded!

Imaging: 2 scanner cameras, mounted 1.3 m above ground and 0.8 m apart to generate stereoscopic vision

S-band radio transmitter for Doppler and range effects and navigation

Entry science (atmospheric probe functions on the way down to Mars’ surface): accelerometers, radar altimeters, thermometers, pressure sensors to get at vertical pressure and thermal structure of the atmosphere, as well as its mean mass and density

Weather station mounted on a boom above the landers (3 anemometers for wind speed, 3 thermocouple thermometers for daily temperature records, and a metal diaphragm for air pressure readings)


Mars: Data from Robotic MissionsNASA Viking 1976-1982

Viking lander instrumentation: fully loaded! Seismometers (3 on each lander, meant to function as

a basic seismic array, but the package on Lander 1 failed)

Magnetic properties instruments (2 magnets on lander backhoe and 1 on top of the lander to capture dust with magnetic properties for imaging with lander cameras through a 4 power magnifying mirror)

Physical properties experiment (mostly using information collected by other instruments incidental to their main uses but processed to give data on soil bulk density, bearing strength, angle of repose, cohesion, internal friction angles, and many other traits)




Neutral mass spectrometer in entry science probe package ionizes materials/chemicals for analysis of their mass and identification

Gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer used to identify materials in Mars surface soils as collected by landers

X-ray fluorescence spectrometer measures X-rays emitted by materials subjected to X-rays from instrument’s radioisotope sources. Soil materials collected by landers’ surface sampler and delivered to the XRFS in the lander body. Spectral analysis of materials ranged as fine as a few parts per million!




Biology experiments were probably the most critical contribution of the landers’ design: incubated Martian soil samples in a variety of environmental conditions, including some control samples sterilized by heat for comparison

Pyrolytic release sought to detect the uptake of carbon dioxide in a photosynthetic or chemosynthetic process, using radioactive C14

Labeled release added radioactive nutrients to the samples and then monitored the air above the samples for signs of the respiration of those radioactive species

Gas exchange involved the purging of the Martian atmosphere from the soil samples, substitution of a custom incubation atmosphere, introduction of a nutrient medium enriched in neon, and then samples of the air in the chamber were taken for gas chromatography



NASA Pathfinder Lander/Sojourner Rover 1997 Pathfinder landed at 19.33°N, 33.55°W: mouth of Ares Vallis into

Chryse Planitia Innovative landing procedure: parachute followed by airbag

deployment and bounce/roll landing Among the rockiest places on Mars, strewn with rocks and boulders

deposited by a massive flood


Mars: Data from Robotic MissionsNASA Pathfinder Lander/Sojourner Rover 1997

Pathfinder and Sojourner instrumentation Atmospheric Structure Instrument/Meterology Package (ASI/MET):

– Temperature (thermocouple for measuring temperature during descent and 3 for continuous post-landing measurement)

– Pressure (diaphragm sensor)– Wind sensors (6 hot wire elements around the top of the lander

mast and three aluminum cone wind socks) Alpha Proton X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS):

– On the Sojourner Rover body, with its sensor head on a deployment mechanism carried by the rover

– Emission of alpha particles at a target creates a scatter of alpha particles and protons from the atomic nuclei of chemicals

– Alpha particles excite atoms and they then emit X-rays, which have emission patterns unique to each element

Imager For Mars Pathfinder IMP:– A stereo imaging system allowing parallax and depth information– Selectable filters allowing multipspectral color detection


Mars: Data from Robotic MissionsNASA Mars Global Surveyor 1997-2006

Orbiter instrumentation Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) Electron Reflectometer (MAGNETOMETER) Gravity Field Experiment (RADIOSCIENCE):



Orbiter instrumentation Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC):

– 3 cameras: 1 b/w narrow angle, 1 blue &1 red wide angle for context– Designed to resolve objects as small as 4-5 m– In 2003, MGS reprogrammed to time roll of the rotating S/C to keep

MOC view fixed on a target longer, resulting in detection of objects as small as 1.4 m (pixel reduced to 0.5 m)

– Paired before/after images of an active gully! Mars not so dead/dry?



Orbiter instrumentation Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA):

– Transmits infrared laser pulses towards Mars at 10 Hz, measures the time of flight, & determines the range of the MGS spacecraft to surface

– Over 600 million of these readings created topographic map of Mars more accurate than any Earth map!

– Used as a passive (reflectance detecting) radiometer at 1064 nm



NASA Mars Global Surveyor 1997-2006 Orbiter instrumentation

• Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA)



NASA Mars Global Surveyor 1997-2006

Orbiter instrumentation Thermal Emission

Spectrometer (TES): – Collects infrared

spectra emitted by the Martian surface

– Has collected over 200 million spectra




Electron Reflectometer (MAGNETOMETER): – Measures magnetism on Mars – Planetary magnetic field collapsed long ago, but there are

localized magnetic sources




Gravity Field Experiment (RADIOSCIENCE): – Maps anomalies in the planet's gravitational field – Measures minute tugging effects registered by the

spacecraft's high-gain antenna, its telecommunication system, and the onboard ultra-stable oscillator

– These imply concentrations of dense mass in certain areas and, thus, give some information on the planet’s internal structure

– Also does occultation readings to get data on the atmosphere’s thickness and pressure


Mars: Data from Robotic MissionsNASA Mars Odyssey 2001 - present

Orbiter instrumentation Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) Gamma Ray Spectrometer (GRS) Martian Radiation Environment Experiment (MARIE)



Orbiter instrumentation Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS):

– 2 independent multispectral scanning systems– 5 visible light bands (with 19 m pixels) – 10 infrared bands (with 100 m pixels)– THEMIS focusses on identifying water and ice



Orbiter instrumentation Gamma Ray Spectrometer (GRS) sensor package mounted on a 6

m boom– Detects gamma rays emitted by the Martian surface due to

exposure to highly energetic cosmic rays– Gamma ray distribution types recorded by Gamma Ray Sensor

identify chemicals in emitting surface– Neutrons are also produced by cosmic ray bombardment and

they are what excites surfaces into emitting gamma rays– They are themselves collected by HEND and Neutron

Spectrometers



NASA Mars Odyssey 2001 - present Orbiter instrumentation

Gamma Ray Spectrometer (GRS) – Enabled maps of hydrogen abundance in the upper meter or so

of the Martian surface– Hydrogen abundance indicates subsurface water or ice



NASA Mars Odyssey 2001 - present Orbiter instrumentation

Martian Radiation Environment Experiment (MARIE)– Designed to measure the radiation environment of space between Earth

and Mars and around Mars– Characterizes the space radiation hazard for astronauts en route to or on

the surface of Mars – Space radiation can trigger cancer/ damage the central nervous system



NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) 2006-present Orbiter instrumentation

High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) Context Imager (CTX) Mars Color Imager (MARCI) Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometers for Mars (CRISM) Shallow Subsurface Radar (SHARAD) Mars Climate Sounder (MCS)



NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) 2006-present

Orbiter instrumentation High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE)

– The most powerful camera ever flown on a spacecraft– Telescopic visible light camera with ~1 m resolution – Near-infrared has ~30-60 cm pixels – Resolution of objects ~1.2 - 2.4 m (such as rovers!)– “The People’s Camera” – citizen science opportunities




Orbiter instrumentation High Resolution Imaging

Science Experiment (HiRISE)– Joints and halos

structures– Fluid flow along

joints precipitating deposits of “halos”




Orbiter instrumentation High Resolution Imaging

Science Experiment (HiRISE)– Victoria Crater in

Meridiani– Opportunity rover

on edge of crater




Context Imager (CTX):– Coarser resolution camera of a larger area (~30 km swaths at 6 m

per pixel) – Provides a regional context for HiRISE close-ups– Catches interesting regional-scale features




Orbiter instrumentation Context Imager (CTX):

– Multiple dust devils in Amazonis Planitia




Orbiter instrumentation Context Imager (CTX):

– Crater in Terra Sirenum with gullied walls




Mars Color Imager (MARCI):– Coarser resolution camera– 5 visible light bands and 2 ultraviolet bands– Observe Martian atmospheric processes synoptically and at a

global scale for at least one full Martian year (687 Earth days)– Study interaction of the atmosphere with the surface at a variety of

scales in both space and time – Examine surface features characteristic of Martian climate as it

evolves over time




Mars Color Imager (MARCI)




Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometers for Mars (CRISM):– Visible and infrared spectrometers of phenomenal spectral

resolution: 544 bands between 0.36-3.92 microns– Enable maps at ~18 m resolution– Designed to identify spectral signatures associated with minerals

that precipitate out of water, such as gypsum and carbonates




Orbiter instrumentation Compact Reconnaissance

Imaging Spectrometers for Mars (CRISM)

Top image of barchan dune field shows 3 colors picked up by our natural vision

Bottom shows 3 “colors” in the infrared that highlight compositional variations – iron- and magnesium-rich igneous materials show as reddish here




Shallow Subsurface Radar (SHARAD):– 15-25 MHz frequency radar – Can penetrate the Martian surface down as far as 1 km – Horizontal resolution of this instrument is about 0.3 - 3 km – Vertical resolution is about 15 m in free space and 10 m underground – Looks for changes in the electrical reflection characteristics of the radar

return that might indicate water or ice or other buried structures Mars Climate Sounder




Orbiter instrumentation Shallow Subsurface Radar

(SHARAD):

– Buried flood channels under Elysium Planitia

– Ice and dust layers under S. Pole




Orbiter instrumentation Shallow Subsurface Radar

(SHARAD): Mars Climate Sounder

– Observes temperature, humidity, and dust

– Changes in atmospheric temperature or composition with height

– 9 channels: 1 spanning the VL from 0.3-3.0 microns (near UV and near IR), 8 in the thermal IR from 12-50 microns

– Looks at Martian horizon from orbit to create a vertical layering of readings

– CO2 clouds & snow!!

c.m. rodrigue, 2015 geography, csulb mars: sources of data from the robotic missions ii geography...

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