Focus 199

MegaPixel
Postcards from
MARS
Their primary mission was meant to last just 90 days. But NASA’s robotic
Mars Exploration Rovers have now spent ﬁ ve years surveying the Red
Planet’s barren and dusty surface. The scenery has been spectacular…
THE ROVERS’ ROUTES
Launched from Earth in summer 2003,
the two rovers touched down on Mars
in January 2004. The ﬁ rst rover, Spirit,
landed in Gusev Crater – a 145km-
(90 mile) wide impact basin near
the equator. Three weeks later, the
second vehicle, Opportunity, landed
at Meridiani Planum, on the opposite
side of the planet. The two maps here
show the routes the two vehicles took.
Opportunity (near right) headed brieﬂ y
east before turning south towards
the spectacular Victoria Crater. Spirit
(centre) set off northeast to investigate
the Bonneville Crater and then turned
southeast on a trek towards a distant
5 outcrop called Columbia Hills. As Focus
went to press, Spirit had travelled more
A/JPL X than 7km (4 miles) and Opportunity
AS
N
had clocked up almost 13km (8 miles).
6 February 2009 www.bbcfocusmagazine.com
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