My Dark Sky

I know this piece of news is late… I had just came back from outstation…

The good news is that Phoenix Mars Lander had successfully landed in an arctic region called Vastitas Borealis on Mars yesterday.

And the first image of the horizon from Phoenix:

This image, one of the first captured by NASA’s Phoenix Mars Lander, shows the vast plains of the northern polar region of Mars. The flat landscape is strewn with tiny pebbles and shows polygonal cracking, a pattern seen widely in Martian high latitudes and also observed in permafrost terrains on Earth. The polygonal cracking is believed to have resulted from seasonal freezing and thawing of surface ice. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona.

This image shows a polygonal pattern in the ground near NASA’s Phoenix Mars Lander, similar in appearance to icy ground in the arctic regions of Earth. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona.

The image shows Phoenix’s octagonal solar panels, which opened like two handheld, collapsible fans on either side of the spacecraft. Beyond this view is a small slice of the north polar terrain of Mars. The successfully deployed solar panels are critical to the success of the 90-day mission, as they are the spacecraft’s only means of replenishing its power. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona.

This view of a portion of the spacecraft deck and one of the footpads shows a solid surface at the spacecraft’s landing site. Each footpad is about the size of a large dinner plate, measuring 11.5 inches from rim to rim. The base of the footpad is shaped like the bottom of a shallow bowl to provide stability. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona.

~ by thChieh on May 26, 2008.

Posted in Mars
Tags: Phoenix