Mars Exploration Rover (MER) Activities at Malin Space Science Systems

Mars Exploration Rover (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

Malin Space Science Systems (MSSS) has played critical roles in the Mars Exploration Rover mission, including:

• During Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL), each rover transmitted telemetry to the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Relay antenna. These data went into the Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) buffer, and from there were returned to Earth via Malin Space Science Systems. Because of the timing with which these data were received, MSSS personnel were the first to have definitive evidence that each rover had landed safely.

• MGS MOC, operated by MSSS, acquired hundreds of images, including stereo pairs, of potential MER landing sites. These were used to help evaluate where the two rovers should land and to assess landing site geology and wide angle images to monitor the weather of these regions.

• MGS MOC acquired images of each rover, their tracks, and landing hardware on the Martian surface (see icons below).

• MGS MOC wide angle images were used to monitor and predict weather that might affect the Spirit and Opportunity rovers. This weather monitoring has continued at MSSS with the MRO MARCI. Weather conditions are reported to the MER team each week and to the general public via the weekly weather report.

• Michael Malin, President of MSSS, is a member of the MER science investigation team, and Principal Investigator for the MGS MOC. Some MSSS operations personnel have participated in the operation of MER instruments.

Mars Relay for the Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity

2002 MSSS Fall AGU Poster regarding Sedimentary Rocks of Sinus Meridiani (PDF) December 2002

Raw MOC Images of MER Landing Sites February 2000 to November 2003

Finding MERs -- how Mars Relay and MOC data were planned to be used to locate the landers

MSSS Involvement in MER Missions