PIA00363: Soil Sample Site


Soil Sample Site

Caption:

High-resolution photo of the Martian surface near the Viking Lander 2 shows a few square meters (yards) at one of the possible spots for acquiring a soil sample. The sample will be collected next Saturday (September 11) by the Lander's trenching scoop and delivered to the spacecraft instruments. The rock in the right foreground is about 25 centimeters (10 inches) across. Most rocks appear to have vesicles, or small holes, in them. Such rocks on Earth can be produced by either volcanic processes or by hypervelocity impacts of meteorites. Some areas are lighter than others, suggesting the presence of two kinds of fine-grained materials, which also can be produced by both volcanic and impact processes. A nearby large impact crater, named Mie, may be the source of the rocks and fine-grained material at the landing site.

Cataloging Keywords:

Name Value Additional Values
Target Mars
System
Target Type Planet
Mission Viking
Instrument Host Viking 2 Lander
Host Type Lander
Instrument Camera 2
Detector
Extra Keywords Crater, Grayscale, Impact, Volcano
Acquisition Date
Release Date 1997-01-08
Date in Caption
Image Credit NASA/JPL
Source photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA00363
Identifier PIA00363