Columbia Memorial Station
Explanation:
After leaving its nest, the Spirit rover turned to captured
this
spectacular view over the
Colombia Memorial Station
and the floor of Gusev crater
on the 16th
sol of its visit to Mars.
The sharp picture
looks toward
the northeast.
Over 2 meters wide,
the lander platform surrounded by
deflated airbags, and the egress ramp used by the rover
to complete its journey to the
martian surface, are in the foreground.
In the background lie Spirit's likely
future waypoints and
destination - initially toward a ridge on the left bordering an
impact crater about 200 meters across and
finally toward.
the
hills visible
on the horizon at the right.
The crater is about 250 meters away while the hills are about
3 kilometers distant.
Searching for evidence of
ancient
watery environments,
Spirit's scientific instruments have begun to return data
on the
composition of the surface in the lander's
vicinity, suggesting that iron bearing volcanic minerals are present.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
