This image, which has been flipped horizontally, was taken by Viking
Lander 1 on August 1, 1976, 12 sols after landing. Much like images that
have returned from Phoenix, the soil beneath Viking 1 has been exposed due
to exhaust from thruster engines during descent. This is visible to the
right of the struts of Viking's surface-sampler arm housing, seen on the
left.
The Phoenix Mission is led by the University of Arizona, Tucson, on behalf
of NASA. Project management of the mission is by NASA's Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. Spacecraft development is by Lockheed Martin
Space Systems, Denver.
