modern exploration mars global surveyor
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Modern Exploration Mars Global Surveyor. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Modern ExplorationMars Global Surveyor
“The mission will provide a global portrait of Mars as it exists today…This new view will help planetary scientists to better understand the history of Mars' evolution, and will provide clues about the planet's interior and surface evolution. With this information, we will have a better understanding of the history of all of the inner planets of the solar system, including our home planet, Earth.”
Glenn E. Cunningham, Project Manager
Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
Objectives: High resolution imaging of the surface Study the topography and gravity Study the role of water and dust on the surface and in the
atmosphere Study the weather and climate of Mars Study the composition of the surface and atmosphere Study the existence and evolution of the Martian magnetic field
Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
Objectives: High resolution imaging of the surface Study the topography and gravity Study the role of water and dust on the surface and in the
atmosphere Study the weather and climate of Mars Study the composition of the surface and atmosphere Study the existence and evolution of the Martian magnetic field
Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
Launched November 7, 1996; arrived at Mars on September 12, 1997
Spent the next 16 months “aerobraking”, began mapping the surface in March 1997
Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
Instruments Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC); capture high-resolution images
of the surface (1.5 meters per pixel) Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES); investigate thermal
properties of rocks and soils, collect mineralogy data Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA); elevation data Magnetometer/Electron Reflectometer; search for evidence
of a planetary magnetic field
Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
Instruments Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC); capture high-resolution images
of the surface (1.5 meters per pixel) Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES); investigate thermal
properties of rocks and soils, collect mineralogy data Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA); elevation data Magnetometer/Electron Reflectometer; search for evidence
of a planetary magnetic field
Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
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Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
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Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
Credit: Malin Space Science Systems – www.msss.com
Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
Credit: NASA/JPL/ASU
Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
Credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center
Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
Notable results from Global Surveyor The northern hemisphere is probably just as cratered as the
southern hemisphere, but the craters are mostly buried. High-resolution imagery shows modifications to the surface
have taken place over the past decade. Hundreds of gullies were discovered that were formed from
liquid water, possibly in recent times. The Thermal Emission Spectrometer found that just about all
of the surface of Mars is covered with volcanic rock.
Modern ExplorationGlobal Surveyor
How did Global Surveyor advance scientific understanding of Mars? Smoking gun evidence that liquid water was stable on the surface
for long periods of time Mars exhibits a “global dichotomy” in terms of topography Spectral ID of the global surface composition
What technological advance(s) did Global Surveyor carry? Highest-resolution camera, for the time Laser altimeter TES; lithology, mineralogy