Mars Global Surveyor
Mars Orbiter Camera
Ganges Rocks and Sand
MGS MOC Release No. MOC2-974, 17 January 2005
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems |
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NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems |
The top half of this Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows wind-eroded remnants of sedimentary rock outcrops in Ganges Chasma, one of the troughs of the Valles Marineris system. The lower half shows a thick accumulation of dark, windblown sand. The image covers an area about 3 km (1.9 mi) wide and is illuminated by sunlight from the upper left. These features are located near 7.6°S, 49.4°W.
Malin Space Science Systems and the California Institute of Technology built the MOC using spare hardware from the Mars Observer mission. MSSS operates the camera from its facilities in San Diego, California. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Mars Surveyor Operations Project operates the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft with its industrial partner, Lockheed Martin Astronautics, from facilities in Pasadena, California and Denver, Colorado.
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