MRO returns first images
Posted: Sat, Mar 25, 2006, 5:44 PM ET (2244 GMT)
NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) spacecraft transmitted its first images of the Martian surface on Friday, two weeks after entering orbit around the planet. The images were taken late Thursday night by three cameras on the spacecraft as part of engineering tests of the instruments. The images were taken while the spacecraft was more than 2,000 km above the surface, much higher than the spacecraft's final orbit, but still yielded images comparable to the highest-resolution pictures of the Martian surface ever taken, according to NASA officials. MRO has been in an elliptical orbit since arriving at the planet on March 10. The spacecraft will soon begin a series of aerobraking passes through the upper Martian atmosphere to lower and circularize its orbit, a process that will last about six months.
NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) spacecraft transmitted its first images of the Martian surface on Friday, two weeks after entering orbit around the planet. The images were taken late Thursday night by three cameras on the spacecraft as part of engineering tests of the instruments. The images were taken while the spacecraft was more than 2,000 km above the surface, much higher than the spacecraft's final orbit, but still yielded images comparable to the highest-resolution pictures of the Martian surface ever taken, according to NASA officials. MRO has been in an elliptical orbit since arriving at the planet on March 10. The spacecraft will soon begin a series of aerobraking passes through the upper Martian atmosphere to lower and circularize its orbit, a process that will last about six months.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
NASA releases report on Starliner crewed test flight problems
Posted: Sun, Feb 22 11:45 AM ET (1645 GMT) |
|
news links
|
|
Tuesday, February 24
Committee to probe ‘systemic issues’ behind repeated failure of PSLV rocket
The Hindu — 6:35 am ET (1135 GMT) Nasa has a big lesson for Isro: Start talking
India Today — 6:35 am ET (1135 GMT) Starlab Completes NASA Commercial Critical Design Review
Business Wire — 6:34 am ET (1134 GMT) NASA's Artemis II launch date gets pushed back again
Quartz — 6:33 am ET (1133 GMT) Mike Johnson's SOTU guest list
Axios — 6:30 am ET (1130 GMT) |
