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 The MSL Mars Descent Imager (MARDI) camera head. The knife is 88.9 mm (3.5 inches) long. Image credit: Malin Space Science Systems |
The MSL Mars Decent Imager (MARDI) will obtain high-definition, natural color motion imaging during the rover’s descent to the martian surface. Under nominal circumstances, for about 100 seconds, from the time the heat shield is jettisoned until touch down, approximately 500 images of 1600 by 1200 pixels in size will be obtained at altitudes below 3.7 kilometers. The first image will cover an area approximately 4 by 3 kilometers at a resolution of about 2.5 meters per pixel. The last fully in-focus images, taken about 5 meters above the ground, will cover areas of about 5 by 4 meters across at a resolution of 0.33 centimeters per pixel. Once on the ground images will cover an area about 1 by 0.75 m across at a resolution of about 1.5 mm per pixel pair.
The data will be used very shortly after landing to tell the MSL science team exactly where the rover has landed, and how far away it may be from key geologic features of interest. The images will be used to plan the initial rover traverses, and will provide a profile of the wind encountered by the rover during its descent.
The basic attributes of the MSL MARDI system are: