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Press Release Images: Spirit
19-Jan-2004
Spirit Drives to a Rock Called 'Adirondack' for Close Inspection
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'They of the Great Rocks'
"They of the Great Rocks"

This approximate true color image taken by the panoramic camera onboard the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit shows "Adirondack," the rover's first target rock. Spirit traversed the sandy martian terrain at Gusev Crater to arrive in front of the football-sized rock on Sunday, Jan. 18, 2004, just three days after it successfully rolled off the lander. The rock was selected as Spirit's first target because its dust-free, flat surface is ideally suited for grinding. Clean surfaces also are better for examining a rock's top coating. Scientists named the angular rock after the Adirondack mountain range in New York. The word Adirondack is Native American and is interpreted by some to mean "They of the great rocks."

Image credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell
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'They of the Great Rocks'-2
"They of the Great Rocks"-2

This approximate true color image taken by the panoramic camera onboard the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit shows "Adirondack," the rover's first target rock. Spirit traversed the sandy martian terrain at Gusev Crater to arrive in front of the football-sized rock on Sunday, Jan. 18, 2004, just three days after it successfully rolled off the lander. The rock was selected as Spirit's first target because its dust-free, flat surface is ideally suited for grinding. Clean surfaces also are better for examining a rock's top coating. Scientists named the angular rock after the Adirondack mountain range in New York. The word Adirondack is Native American and is interpreted by some to mean "They of the great rocks."

Image credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell
Browse Image (50 kB) | Large (401 kB)
'They of the Great Rocks'-3
"They of the Great Rocks"-3

This 3-D perspective image taken by the panoramic camera onboard the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit shows "Adirondack," the rover's first target rock. Spirit traversed the sandy martian terrain at Gusev Crater to arrive in front of the football-sized rock on Sunday, Jan. 18, 2004, just three days after it successfully rolled off the lander. The rock was selected as Spirit's first target because it has a flat surface and is relatively free of dust - ideal conditions for grinding into the rock to expose fresh rock underneath. Clean surfaces also are better for examining a rock's top coating. Scientists named the angular rock after the Adirondack mountain range in New York. The word Adirondack is Native American and is interpreted by some to mean "They of the great rocks." Data from the panoramic camera's red, green and blue filters were combined to create this approximate true color image.

Image credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell
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Ready to Rock and Roll
Hungry for Rocks

This image taken by the panoramic camera onboard the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit shows "Sashimi" and "Sushi" - two rocks that scientists considered investigating first. Ultimately, these rocks were not chosen because their rough and dusty surfaces are ill-suited for grinding. Dusty surfaces also can obscure observations of a rock's top coating. Data from the panoramic camera's red, blue and green filters were combined to create this approximate true color picture.

Image credit: NASA/JPL
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Approaching Rock Target No. 1
Approaching Rock Target No. 1

This 3-D stereo anaglyph image was taken by the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit front hazard-avoidance camera after the rover's first post-egress drive on Mars Sunday. Engineers drove the rover approximately 3 meters (10 feet) from the Columbia Memorial Station toward the first rock target, seen in the foreground. The football-sized rock was dubbed Adirondack because of its mountain-shaped appearance. Scientists plan to use instruments at the end of the rover's robotic arm to examine the rock and understand how it formed.

Image credit: NASA/JPL
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Rover Takes a Sunday Drive
Rover Takes a Sunday Drive

This animation, made with images from the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit hazard-avoidance camera, shows the rover's perspective of its first post-egress drive on Mars Sunday. Engineers drove Spirit approximately 3 meters (10 feet) toward its first rock target, a football-sized, mountain-shaped rock called Adirondack. The drive took approximately 30 minutes to complete, including time stopped to take images. Spirit first made a series of arcing turns totaling approximately 1 meter (3 feet). It then turned in place and made a series of short, straightforward movements totaling approximately 2 meters (6.5 feet).

Image credit: NASA/JPL
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Adirondack Lies Ahead
Ready to Rock and Roll

This image from the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit hazard-avoidance camera shows the rover's perspective just before its first post-egress drive on Mars. On Sunday, the 15th martian day, or sol, of Spirit's journey, engineers drove Spirit approximately 3 meters (10 feet) toward its first rock target, a football-sized, mountain-shaped rock called Adirondack (not pictured). In the foreground of this image are "Sashimi" and "Sushi" - two rocks that scientists considered investigating first. Ultimately, these rocks were not chosen because their rough and dusty surfaces are ill-suited for grinding.

Image credit: NASA/JPL
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Spirit Takes a Turn for Adirondack
Spirit Takes a Turn for Adirondack

This rear hazard-avoidance camera image looks back at the circular tracks made in the martian soil when the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit drove about 3 meters (10 feet) toward the mountain-shaped rock called Adirondack, Spirit's first rock target. Spirit made a series of arcing turns totaling approximately 1 meter (3 feet). It then turned in place and made a series of short, straightforward movements totaling approximately 2 meters (6.5 feet). The drive took about 30 minutes to complete, including time stopped to take images. The two rocks in the upper left corner of the image are called "Sashimi" and "Sushi." In the upper right corner is a portion of the lander, now known as the Columbia Memorial Station.

Image credit: NASA/JPL
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Rocks: Windows to History of Mars
Rocks: Windows to History of Mars

This full-resolution image taken by the panoramic camera onboard the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit before it rolled off the lander shows the rocky surface of Mars. Scientists are eager to begin examining the rocks because, unlike soil, these "little time capsules" hold memories of the ancient processes that formed them. Data from the camera's red, green and blue filters were combined to create this approximate true color picture.

Image credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell
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Rocks: Windows to History of Mars-2
Rocks: Windows to History of Mars-2

This full-resolution image taken by the panoramic camera onboard the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit before it rolled off the lander shows the rocky surface of Mars. Scientists are eager to begin examining the rocks because, unlike soil, these "little time capsules" hold memories of the ancient processes that formed them. The lander's deflated airbags can be seen in the foreground. Data from the camera's red, green and blue filters were combined to create this approximate true color picture.

Image credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell
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Virtual Rover Drives Toward Rock
Virtual Rover Drives Toward Rock

This image shows a screenshot from the software used by engineers to test and drive the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit. The software simulates the rover's movements across the martian terrain, helping to plot a safe course. Here, engineers simulated Spirit's first post-egress drive on Mars Sunday. The 3-meter (10-foot) drive totaled approximately 30 minutes, including time to stop and take images. The rover drove toward its first rock target, a mountain-shaped rock called Adirondack. The blue line denotes the path of the rover's "belly button," as engineers like to call it, as the rover drove toward Adirondack. The virtual 3-D world around the rover was built from images taken by Spirit's stereo navigation cameras. Regions for which the rover has not yet acquired 3-D data are represented in beige.

Image credit: NASA/JPL
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