Distant Vistas 2 - The view from Cape Tribulation |
Distant Vistas 2 - The view from Cape Tribulation |
Dec 17 2014, 12:18 AM
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#16
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 1075 Joined: 21-September 07 From: Québec, Canada Member No.: 3908 |
I don't know if this has been noticed before. In the attached (enhanced) pancam image taken on sol 3873, there is a very faint hill. I tried to bring it out somewhat (noise removed, fiddled with curves in Photoshop). The direction is over the plains, to the right of Cape Tribulation. Could it be Bopolu crater? On the other hand, it doesn't seem wide enough for that.
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Dec 17 2014, 01:30 AM
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#17
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 4260 Joined: 17-January 05 Member No.: 152 |
I've been eyeing that feature for several sols - notice how the view has improved since 3863: we have climbed substantially since then and can see much more of the feature:
http://mars.nasa.gov/mer/gallery/all/1/p/3...L1P2426R1M1.JPG This is too far to the south to be Bopolu and has the wrong shape - here's an old view of Bopolu: I've been meaning to check some azimuths but haven't had time. My too-many-years-staring-at-Mars-images intuition says it's the crater rim I've circled here: But again, I'd need to do some measurements to be sure. Once we're closer to the summit we should see Iazu again and that'll fix things better. But if this is right, this is the farthest feature we've seen from Oppy - it's farther than Bopolu and the Miyamoto rim segment ("mule ears" we called it those years ago). |
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Dec 17 2014, 11:05 AM
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#18
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3516 Joined: 4-November 05 From: North Wales Member No.: 542 |
I've been watching that too and thinking it might be Miyamoto. I'd expect the 'mule ears' to be lined up to appear as one from where we are now. But I have no handle on the azimuths so that was a wild guess. It would be exciting to be seeing an even more distant feature but I'd find that surprising given the curvature of the planet. Might be worth checking the theoretical visibility with Google Earth Mars
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Dec 17 2014, 08:49 PM
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#19
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3516 Joined: 4-November 05 From: North Wales Member No.: 542 |
A crude estimate from the pancams puts the main peak 40 to 45-ish degrees to the right of Tribulation summit which I think is about right for the combined 'Mule Ears'. Also I think there is a long low distant horizon feature well to the left in that same image. This could be the nearer hills we were originally looking for in that general direction when the 'Mule Ears' popped up instead.
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Dec 17 2014, 09:07 PM
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#20
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Senior Member Group: Moderator Posts: 2262 Joined: 9-February 04 From: Melbourne - Oz Member No.: 16 |
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Dec 17 2014, 09:38 PM
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#21
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3516 Joined: 4-November 05 From: North Wales Member No.: 542 |
Do you mean that is the main peak showing in the image charborob posted? That's the feature I thought might be the lower hills I referred to in my post just before yours. The trouble with those hills being the main peak visible in charborob's image is that if they were that big we should have seen them before when we first saw the 'Mule Ears'.
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Dec 17 2014, 10:20 PM
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#22
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Senior Member Group: Moderator Posts: 2262 Joined: 9-February 04 From: Melbourne - Oz Member No.: 16 |
Yes I think that is the horizon feature charborob posted. Back in 2010 when we were looking at the 'Mule Ears' we didn't have a great view on that azimuth. It sits in a bit of a dip and we had a closeish horizon in that direction back then. Now it looks to be much more favourable. I don't think the azimuth is right to be the 'Mule Ears', if we got the ID right back in 2010 they should be about half a Pancam frame further to the right.
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Dec 17 2014, 10:36 PM
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#23
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3516 Joined: 4-November 05 From: North Wales Member No.: 542 |
OK, thanks. I'm glad you're in on the hunt. If you're right we should have a great view of the Miyamoto rim just a bit to the right of what we see now. It's not much further away than than this feature. Maybe there is already something visible at the extreme right of the image. I've been scutinising that but everything darkens there so it's difficult to say. I hope you will have time to provide us with one of your wonderful reverse polar horizon analyses when we reach the summit.
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Dec 17 2014, 10:56 PM
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#24
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Senior Member Group: Moderator Posts: 2262 Joined: 9-February 04 From: Melbourne - Oz Member No.: 16 |
Yeah really looking forward to the summit pan, that should nail things down. I wonder how good the view will be though. I don't think the visibility is all that great, else I we should be able to see more of Miyamoto right now.
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Jan 7 2015, 11:31 AM
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#25
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3516 Joined: 4-November 05 From: North Wales Member No.: 542 |
Clear view forward: http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportuni...DGP1870L0M1.JPG
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Jan 7 2015, 02:46 PM
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#26
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 1089 Joined: 19-February 05 From: Close to Meudon Observatory in France Member No.: 172 |
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Jan 7 2015, 03:25 PM
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#27
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Member Group: Members Posts: 691 Joined: 21-December 07 From: Clatskanie, Oregon Member No.: 3988 |
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Jan 7 2015, 04:09 PM
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#28
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Solar System Cartographer Group: Members Posts: 10256 Joined: 5-April 05 From: Canada Member No.: 227 |
-------------------- ... because the Solar System ain't gonna map itself.
Also to be found posting similar content on https://mastodon.social/@PhilStooke Maps for download (free PDF: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/comm...Cartography.pdf NOTE: everything created by me which I post on UMSF is considered to be in the public domain (NOT CC, public domain) |
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Jan 7 2015, 04:52 PM
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#29
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Interplanetary Dumpster Diver Group: Admin Posts: 4405 Joined: 17-February 04 From: Powell, TN Member No.: 33 |
Wow oh wow! I never thought I'd see Oppy become a mountain climber!
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Jan 7 2015, 04:59 PM
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#30
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Founder Group: Chairman Posts: 14448 Joined: 8-February 04 Member No.: 1 |
And for the past month or so - without the use of flash memory.
Extraordinary. |
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