PIA01136: Sojourner Rover View of "Souffle" Rock


Sojourner Rover View of “Souffle” Rock

Caption:

Sojourner's observations in the Ares region on Mars raise and answer questions about the origins of the rocks and other deposits found there. This image shows the vesicular and pitted textures of Souffle Rock (32 cm wide) which could be a result of volcanic, sedimentary, or weathering processes.

NOTE: original caption as published in Science magazine

Background Info:

Mars Pathfinder is the second in NASA's Discovery program of low-cost spacecraft with highly focused science goals. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, developed and manages the Mars Pathfinder mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).

Photojournal note: Sojourner spent 83 days of a planned seven-day mission exploring the Martian terrain, acquiring images, and taking chemical, atmospheric and other measurements. The final data transmission received from Pathfinder was at 10:23 UTC on September 27, 1997. Although mission managers tried to restore full communications during the following five months, the successful mission was terminated on March 10, 1998.

Cataloging Keywords:

Name Value Additional Values
Target Mars
System
Target Type Planet
Mission Mars Pathfinder (MPF)
Instrument Host Sojourner
Host Type Rover
Instrument Rover Cameras
Detector
Extra Keywords Atmosphere, Grayscale, Volcano
Acquisition Date
Release Date 1998-01-07
Date in Caption
Image Credit NASA/JPL
Source photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA01136
Identifier PIA01136