HiRISE and Mars Polar Lander Options

[Guest_Sunspot_*]

Looking at the images of the Spirit/Opportunity landing site, it seems many of the features such as tracks and rocket blast markings have faded considerably often to the point of being invisible in the nearly three years since landing.

This had me thinking about the MGS images taken in the hope of finding MPL. Initially it was reported that MGS had spotted the lander, one image had a white spot/streak interpreted as the parachute and a dark patch with a spot in the centre not too far off, taken to be the blast zone of the rockets with the lander in the centre.

However another image taken 5 years later seemed to discount this theory - the features had faded or changed significantly. BUT, seeing how much the rover sites have changed in an even shorter time, wouldn't the same happen to the MPL site in 5 years - perhaps to an even greater degree with the more extreme seasonal changes at that location. Also, the latest HiRISE images show just how difficult it has been to spot the landers on the surface with MGS, the Viking sites in particular.

I hope HiRISE takes another look at this spot.

Mars Polar Lander NOT Found, MSSS article:
http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/2005/10/17/

[elakdawalla]

Well, it took me way too long to do this, but I have finally posted a page on the search:
http://www.planetary.org/explore/topics/ma...der_search.html

There's more that I want to do, but I figured this was a good start. I, too, had had the idea of having people report which images they were searching, or ask to be assigned one, but hendric beat me to it. Still, if you want to let me know which images you are searching, do pop me a PM or an email and I'll maintain a tally.

One thing I want to do is create my own base map and see where there are areas of overlap between images. One good test for the viability of a candidate is to see how it looks under different lighting geometry, which you can do if you are lucky enough to have found a candidate near the edge of an image where it may have overlapped another.

--Emily

[Reed]

One thing I want to do is create my own base map and see where there are areas of overlap between images. One good test for the viability of a candidate is to see how it looks under different lighting geometry, which you can do if you are lucky enough to have found a candidate near the edge of an image where it may have overlapped another.

--Emily

This may help: http://global-data.mars.asu.edu/bin//hiris...=3&cookie=0 although the zoom is pretty limited. If you click a point with the select tool, you get a list of images covering that point. Actually finding the corresponding point on the images will still be a bit of work.

You can also select MOC images on the same site, which probably aren't high enough res to see the lander but might provide useful context.

[djellison]

You can also select MOC images on the same site, which probably aren't high enough res to see the lander but might provide useful context.

MOC should, however, resolve the backshell and the parachute. It did with Spirit and Opportunity. When I go MPL hunting - that's what I look for. - If you compare the 'how far it got' elements of EDL, with what you should be able to find on the surface..

DOA / entry failure : Aeroshell impacts at speed, crater, probably unidentifiable.
Failure of chute : probably same as above
Chute deploys, rest a failure : chute and backshell
Lander seperates, but then fails : chute, backshell, heatshield impact site and small probably unidentifiable impact

So in almost any failure mode, the chute and backshell should be visible. What impact the climate would have w.r.t. burying them, covering them etc I don't know, but the Pathfinder chute is clearly visible to HiRISE.

Doug