- Original Caption Released with Image:
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NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity took this image with its
panoramic camera when the rover was about 130 meters (427 feet) from its
heat shield, during the rover's 322nd sol (Dec. 19, 2004). The protective
device shielded the rover from intense frictional heat as it entered the
martian atmosphere. The heat shield was shed during the descent and
landing sequence, just before the rover (within its folded lander) was
lowered on a bridle. Scientists and engineers are interested in seeing
what effects the descent had on the heat shield and are directing
Opportunity to examine it.
- Image Credit:
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NASA/JPL/Cornell
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