{"id":11771,"date":"2021-04-05T01:56:14","date_gmt":"2021-04-04T17:56:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/perseverance-rovers-zoomable-camera-checks-out-on-red-planet\/"},"modified":"2021-04-05T01:56:14","modified_gmt":"2021-04-04T17:56:14","slug":"perseverance-rovers-zoomable-camera-checks-out-on-red-planet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/perseverance-rovers-zoomable-camera-checks-out-on-red-planet\/","title":{"rendered":"Perseverance rover\u2019s zoomable camera checks out on Red Planet"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
The Perseverance rover\u2019s Mastcam-Z instrument took this picture of the Martian horizon Tuesday, March 30. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/ASU\/MSSS<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Scientists have confirmed the first zoomable camera on Mars is in top-top shape since arriving aboard NASA\u2019s Perseverance rover in February, adding a long-distance survey capability to the robot\u2019s scientific toolkit.<\/p>\n

The zoomable imaging instrument, which is actually composed of two nearly identical cameras to provide stereo views, is now ready to capture high-definition video of the Ingenuity helicopter\u2019s first flight in the Martian atmosphere later this month.<\/p>\n

The Mastcam-Z instrument (the Z stands for Zoom) is an upgraded version of the cameras on the mast of NASA\u2019s Curiosity rover, adding the capability to focus and zoom in on rocks across the Martian surface.<\/p>\n

Within days of Perseverance\u2019s landing Feb. 18, Mastcam-Z took pictures at a range of zoom settings. Jim Bell, Mastcam-Z\u2019s principal investigator at Arizona State University, said last month it was \u201cvery exciting\u201d to use the instrument early in the mission to prove everything was working as expected.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, science team members were very quickly drooling over all these images,\u201d Bell said March 16 in a presentation at the 52nd Lunar and Planetary Science Conference.<\/p>\n

Scientists used the Mastcam-Z cameras to take pictures of a calibration target to confirm the instrument\u2019s settings, then captured wide-angle and telephoto views of the surrounding landscape at Jezero Crater, Perseverance\u2019s landing site.<\/p>\n

Mastcam-Z takes pictures that scientists back on Earth can stitch together to create mosaics, providing high-resolution panoramic views 360 degrees across the horizon, with a 180-degree field of view from straight down to straight up. The cameras have an effective focal length ranging from 26 millimeters to 110 millimeters.<\/p>\n

\"\"
The Mastcam-Z instrument\u2019s zoom capability is well illustrated in this image of the Perseverance rover\u2019s tracks on Mars. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/ASU\/MSSS<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Bell said the science team tested Mastcam-Z\u2019s resolution by aiming the cameras at Martian rocks near the rover. Fully zoomed in, the cameras can resolve features as small as the tip of a pencil near the rover, or as small as an almond from a football field away, scientists said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can also do that in stereo,\u201d Bell said. \u201cWe match the eyes from wide angle all the way to telephoto, (which is) kind of an advancement over what the Mastcam can can do on Curiosity,\u201d Bell said. \u201cBut the system is very, very similar, also designed and built in collaboration and operate in collaboration with Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mastcam-Z\u2019s cameras have color filters that can give scientists hints about the composition of distant rocks. Bell likened Mastcam-Z\u2019s role on the mission as \u201cdoing triage\u201d to help the rover science team select targets for higher-fidelity spectrometers and other instruments.<\/p>\n

At its highest zoom setting, Mastcam-Z was able to see details in the edge of delta deposits laid down by a dried-up river that flowed into a lake that filled Jezero Crater billions of years ago. The delta sediments, more than a mile from the rover\u2019s current location, are a primary target for Perseverance, and scientists hope to find signatures of ancient life there.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll eventually get closer to these, and of course, get better resolution than we\u2019re getting,\u201d Bell said. At the rover\u2019s current distance a few kilometers from the delta, Bell said Mastcam-Z can resolve features with sizes of a basketball to a beach ball.<\/p>\n

Bell said Mastcam-Z will be used for science and rover operations.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re doing all of the kinds of geomorphology, geology, atmospheric science, some astronomical observations \u2026 color multispectral imaging for science, but we\u2019re also doing a lot of engineering support for driving and (robot) arm placement and helicopter operations,\u201d Bell said.<\/p>\n

Mastcam-Z can also capture high-definition videos, a capability Bell says will be put to use with the test flights of NASA\u2019s Ingenuity helicopter later this month.<\/p>\n

\"\"
The Ingenuity helicopter deployed its final two landing legs Tuesday, March 30. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Perseverance rover released the 4-pound (1.8-kilogram) rotorcraft onto the Martian surface Saturday, setting the stage for the first of up to five planned test flights as soon as April 11.<\/p>\n

The rover itself will drive to an observation post nearly a football field away from the helicopter\u2019s flight zone. Managers want to ensure the experimental drone, which will be attempting the first powered flight in the atmosphere of another planet, does not endanger the $2.4 billion rover.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe plan to use our video capability, and our telephoto capabilities, because we have to stand off quite a ways from the helicopter, Bell said. \u201cBut we\u2019ll be definitely doing videos with the Mastcam-Z of the helicopter. It\u2019s going to be very exciting, and we\u2019re looking forward to those really historic aviation first kind of movies.\u201d<\/p>\n

Email the author.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Perseverance rover\u2019s Mastcam-Z instrument took this picture of the Martian horizon Tuesday, March 30. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/ASU\/MSSS Scientists have confirmed the first zoomable camera on Mars is in top-top shape since arriving aboard NASA\u2019s Perseverance rover in February, adding a long-distance survey capability to the robot\u2019s scientific toolkit. The zoomable imaging instrument, which is actually […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[1518,1630,1183,1631,367,1761,1632,1788],"class_list":["post-11771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-arizona-state-university","tag-ingenuity","tag-jet-propulsion-laboratory","tag-jezero-crater","tag-mars","tag-mars-2020","tag-mars-helicopter","tag-mastcam-z"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11771"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11771"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11771\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}