Google Mars HiRISE base images for Opportunity Options

[elakdawalla]

Because it has become a forum FAQ, I've created this sticky thread containing information on where to obtain new base images for Opportunity's traverse for Google Mars, and for discussion on creating new ones. I will continue to add links to new base image layers to this first post as they become available.

New users: Download this 4-MB kml file and open it in Google Earth
Then go to the last post in the Opportunity Route Map thread for the latest traverse map
You need to download the new KML file each time in order to follow Opportunity's peregrinations.

Google Mars comes with a color base image mosaic created from HRSC imagery. In addition, there is an inset full-resolution HiRISE image covering the area from the landing site at Eagle crater, through Victoria, up to the point between sol 2040 and 2041 (just west of Mackinac) where Opportunity drove off the map.

Unfortunately, this Victoria crater HiRISE layer included within Google Mars is not perfectly registered to the HRSC base map. As far as is known, there is nothing to be done about that. Both John Cody's image layers and Eduardo Tesheiner's traverse maps are aligned with the inset HiRISE layer included with Google Mars, NOT to the HRSC base map.

In June 2009 SFJCody posted a reduced-resolution mosaic of HiRISE tiles that cover the entire future traverse area including Endeavour's rim. I have made some small modifications to that map and have hosted it in a single file here (17 MB). Download the file, run Google Earth, select the Mars view, and File>Open the KMZ to view it.

In September 2009 SFJCody posted another HiRISE base image, this one at full resolution, covering the Western Route and reaching not quite all the way to Santa Maria. Here is a link to the kml file (4 MB). Here is a link to a zipped version if you'd prefer to have it locally (256 MB) and I also wrote a blog entry about it.

During the discussion below, in late 2010, I created a small tile that covers just the immediate area around Santa Maria. Here is a link to the kml file covering that region.

In February 2011 Eduardo Tesheiner provided another set of base images covering the area from Santa Maria to Endeavour's rim. Here is a link to the kml file. If you would like to work from a local copy, you can download this 75 MB zip file and unzip it to a folder on your drive, then open the file PSP_010341_1775_RED.kml within it.

All three base images can be loaded at once using this kml file (the same one that is linked to at the very top of this post).

[Ross Beyer]

As I had mentioned a long, long time ago, we (the Ames Planetary Content team) were working on constructing new HiRISE/CTX overlays in the Google Earth client for the Opportunity route. We're far enough along that I want to have you guys take them for a spin so that I can get your feedback.

The attached KML file has NetworkLinks that point to our servers at Ames.

As far as geo-position goes, we decided to leave Victoria Crater where it is, and adjust the surrounding images. At some point in the future (I've been told "after the mission is over" as a time frame), there will be a giant geolocation solution by members of the MER team, at which point we'd move everything to be consistent with that, but its far enough in the future that I'm not gonna worry about it right now.

Also, the HiRISE image that covers the Endeavor rim isn't just any HiRISE image, but an ortho-image made from a HiRISE terrain model, and if things work out the way that I want them to, by the time this basemap makes it into the client (end of summer? fall at the latest, I hope), the HiRISE terrain will be in there, too.

Attached File(s)

 Opportunity_Traverse_2011.kml ( 963bytes ) Number of downloads: 1264

 

[tim53]

As I had mentioned a long, long time ago, we (the Ames Planetary Content team) were working on constructing new HiRISE/CTX overlays in the Google Earth client for the Opportunity route. We're far enough along that I want to have you guys take them for a spin so that I can get your feedback.

The attached KML file has NetworkLinks that point to our servers at Ames.

As far as geo-position goes, we decided to leave Victoria Crater where it is, and adjust the surrounding images. At some point in the future (I've been told "after the mission is over" as a time frame), there will be a giant geolocation solution by members of the MER team, at which point we'd move everything to be consistent with that, but its far enough in the future that I'm not gonna worry about it right now.

Also, the HiRISE image that covers the Endeavor rim isn't just any HiRISE image, but an ortho-image made from a HiRISE terrain model, and if things work out the way that I want them to, by the time this basemap makes it into the client (end of summer? fall at the latest, I hope), the HiRISE terrain will be in there, too.

Hi Ross:

I just completed a new basemap of CTX, MOC and HiRISE images in Arcmap that I'll be using for my localization work on Opportunity (I call this "HiThere!"). This map covers all of our traverse from Eagle Crater through Cape York, as well as all of Endeavour and Iazu Craters (since we can see so much of the interior of Endeavour, and Iazu is on our horizon). I first georeferenced the CTX low emission angle images to the HRSC and MOLA DEMs, then tied the HiRISE images to them (and each other, where they overlap). For Endeavour, there is still an annoying gap in the HiRISE coverage just east of center, so I used a couple of MOC images (3m/pixel) to fill that gap. Next step will be to correct the shading from one image to the next so the seams don't detract from the morphology. I've done this for the CTX background mosaic already, and I'm in the process of adjusting the HiRISE images. Next step will be to tile up and get the basemap into our planning software. But once that's done and the route is on it, exporting the path to applications like Google Mars ought to be straightforward. Much sooner than "after the mission is over", I'm hoping.

-Tim.

[elakdawalla]

(I call this "HiThere!")

Apart from that, I applaud the rest of your post and hope to see the product before the mission is over!

[tim53]

Apart from that, I applaud the rest of your post and hope to see the product before the mission is over!

This map is now completed. Stay tuned, as Trent Hare will be posting links to it on the USGS website.

While I consider the map "completed", I reserve the right to continue to update it as better/more images are acquired and I can georeference them to the base MOLA and HRSC topography maps. But I need to get cranking on the Gale basemap for localization and planning during Ops!

-Tim.

[Zeke4ther]

cool!!

[tim53]

Hi all!

Sorry this took so long to finish (at least Opportunity is still going!), but Trent Hare of the USGS Flagstaff, has posted my new basemap on a couple websites for quick viewing. These sites are temporary, so I don't know how long they'll be up. There's also a downloadable kmz file for placing in Google Mars. I tried it, and it works, but a colleague here couldn't get it to display. There are some issues - like too hard a stretch - that will be dealt with in future postings.

From Trent:

You can share this also - but warn them it might go away as I can't keep this site live forever .

-------------

But I slapped together an on-line tiled version of your mosaic. Think of "zoomify" but the measure distance tool works geodesically. I think I cached beyond the image (hence the large black area on the right).
http://webgis2.wr.usgs.gov/MER_Meridianni/

Here is the cache for GE too (Does it even work for you ???):
http://webgis2.wr.usgs.gov/ArcGIS/rest/ser...ml/mapImage.kmz

most simple site (only zooming):
http://webgis2.wr.usgs.gov/ArcGIS/rest/ser...pServer?f=jsapi

Rest interface with some funky information listed:
http://webgis2.wr.usgs.gov/ArcGIS/rest/ser...ianni/MapServer

There's also an FTP site for downloading a JP2 version of the file: ftp://pdsimage2.wr.usgs.gov/pub/pigpen/ma...se/MER_mosaics/

And the associated readme text file: ftp://pdsimage2.wr.usgs.gov/pub/pigpen/ma...25cm_README.txt .

I've only given this a quick look, so I apologize if there are issues that I've missed. The map itself needs a couple of corrections that I'll get back to after I return from the Curiosity launch week after next. I've got it into our planning software here for localization and traverse planning. Most annoying (to me) are some residual shading differences that I need to work on some more. The worst of these got that way when Fred Calef and I decided not to include a pair of MOC images over a gap in the HiRISE coverage, as they weren't a significant improvement in resolution over the CTX background mosaic and didn't have the dynamic range - I'd adjusted the shading of the HiRISE image to match the MOC, so it is darker than the CTX background.

In addition to making these kinds of corrections, I plan to make revisions as more data is acquired and released by HiRISE and as time allows.

I hope some here find the file useful. Enjoy!

-Tim.
P.S. Sample screen grab of mosaic with Opportunity path from Eagle to Sol 2777:

Attached thumbnail(s)

 

[Nirgal]

Image Information:
Lines: 224000
Samples: 160000

That's 35 Gigapixels: Cool

Thanks especially for posting the full resolution version: much appreciated.