Wednesday, March 31, 2010

NASA Taking Mars Pictures for YOU!

NASA's Mars orbiter is now working for everyday citizen scientists, collecting suggestions from the public on wanted pictures and shooting the ones receiving the most votes.


The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) included the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE camera) on it's voyage to the Red Planet, also called the "People's Camera".  Today the first eight images requested by the public were made available at www.uahirise.org/releases/hiwish-captions.php.    A couple of examples are shown here although these are actually full scientific photographs taken in multiple wavelengths.  These can be combined and manipulated as you see fit with the special viewer software available on the site.  Of course you can also just marvel at the beauty of the shots.

Although HiRISE has been orbiting Mars since 2006 only 1% of the planet's surface has been photographed.  To suggest new target sites register with the project team at www.uahirise.org/hiwish/ and offer your suggestions.

Enjoy the Show!