Mariner 9
Encyclopedia
Mariner 9 was a NASA
space orbiter that helped in the exploration of Mars
and was part of the Mariner program
. Mariner 9 was launched toward Mars on May 30, 1971 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station
and reached the planet on November 13 of the same year, becoming the first spacecraft to orbit another planet
— only narrowly beating Soviet Mars 2
and Mars 3
, which both arrived within a month. After months of dust-storms it managed to send back clear pictures of the surface.
Mariner 9 was designed to continue the atmospheric studies begun by Mariner 6 and 7
, and to map over 70% of the Martian surface from the lowest altitude (1500 kilometres (932.1 mi) and at the highest resolutions (from 1 kilometer per pixel to 100 meters per pixel) of any Mars mission up to that point. An infrared radiometer was included to detect heat sources in search of evidence of volcanic activity. It was to study temporal changes in the Martian atmosphere and surface. Mars' two moons were also to be analyzed. Mariner 9 more than met its objectives.
Mariner 9 was the first spacecraft
to orbit
another planet
. It carried an instrument payload similar to Mariner 6 and 7
, but, because of the need for a larger propulsion system to control the spacecraft in Mars
orbit, it weighed more than Mariners 6 and 7 combined. When Mariner 9 arrived at Mars, the atmosphere was so dust
y that the surface was obscured. This unexpected situation made a strong case for the desirability of studying a planet from orbit rather than merely flying past. Mariner 9's computer was thus programmed from Earth to delay imaging of the surface for a couple of months until the dust settled. After 349 days in orbit, Mariner 9 had transmitted 7,329 images, covering 100% of Mars' surface. The images revealed river
beds, crater
s, massive extinct volcano
es (such as Olympus Mons
, the largest known volcano in the Solar System
), canyon
s (including the Valles Marineris
, a system of canyons over about 2500 miles (4,023.4 km) long), evidence of wind and water erosion
and deposition, weather fronts, fog
s, and more. Mars' tiny moon
s, Phobos
and Deimos
, were also photographed. The findings from the Mariner 9 missions underpinned the later Viking program
.
The enormous Valles Marineris
canyon system is named after Mariner 9 in honor of its achievements.
After depleting its supply of attitude control gas, the spacecraft was turned off on October 27, 1972.
spectrometer
aboard Mariner 9 was constructed by the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
at the University of Colorado
, Boulder, Colorado
. The ultraviolet spectrometer team was led by Professor Charles Barth.
The Infrared Interferometer Spectrometer (IRIS) team was led by Dr. Rudolf A. Hanel from NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center (GSFC). The IRIS instrument was built by Texas Instruments
, Dallas, Texas
.
The Infrared Radiometer (IRR) team was led by Professor Gerald Neugebauer from the California Institute of Technology
(Caltech).
was used during the 1971 Mariner 9 mission to correct for picture transmission errors. The data words used during this mission were 6 bit
s long, which represented 64 grayscale
values.
Because of limitations of the quality of the alignment of the transmitter the maximum useful data length was about 30 bits. Instead of using a repetition code
, a [32, 6, 16] Hadamard code was used. Errors of up to 7 bits per word could be corrected using this scheme.
Compared to a 5-repetition code, the error correcting properties of this Hadamard code are much better, yet its rate is comparable. The efficient decoding algorithm
was an important factor in the decision to use this code. The circuitry used was called the "Green Machine". It employed the fast Fourier transform
which can increase the decoding speed by a factor of 3.
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
space orbiter that helped in the exploration of Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
and was part of the Mariner program
Mariner program
The Mariner program was a program conducted by the American space agency NASA that launched a series of robotic interplanetary probes designed to investigate Mars, Venus and Mercury from 1963 to 1973...
. Mariner 9 was launched toward Mars on May 30, 1971 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is an installation of the United States Air Force Space Command's 45th Space Wing, headquartered at nearby Patrick Air Force Base. Located on Cape Canaveral in the state of Florida, CCAFS is the primary launch head of America's Eastern Range with four launch pads...
and reached the planet on November 13 of the same year, becoming the first spacecraft to orbit another planet
Planet
A planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
— only narrowly beating Soviet Mars 2
Mars 2
The Mars program was a series of Mars unmanned landers and orbiters launched by the Soviet Union in the early 1970s.The Mars 2 and Mars 3 missions consisted of identical spacecraft, each with an orbiter and an attached lander; they were the first human artifacts to impact the surface of Mars...
and Mars 3
Mars 3
The Mars 3 was an unmanned space probe of the Mars program, a series of unmanned Mars landers and orbiters launched by the Soviet Union in the early 1970s....
, which both arrived within a month. After months of dust-storms it managed to send back clear pictures of the surface.
Objectives
Mariner 6 and 7
As part of NASA's wider Mariner program, Mariner 6 and Mariner 7 completed the first dual mission to Mars in 1969. Mariner 6 was launched from Launch Complex 36B at Cape Kennedy and Mariner 7 from Launch Complex 36A at Cape Kennedy...
, and to map over 70% of the Martian surface from the lowest altitude (1500 kilometres (932.1 mi) and at the highest resolutions (from 1 kilometer per pixel to 100 meters per pixel) of any Mars mission up to that point. An infrared radiometer was included to detect heat sources in search of evidence of volcanic activity. It was to study temporal changes in the Martian atmosphere and surface. Mars' two moons were also to be analyzed. Mariner 9 more than met its objectives.
Experiments
- Ultraviolet Spectrometer (UVS)
- Infrared Interferometer Spectrometer (IRIS)
- Celestial Mechanics (not a separate instrument; it relied upon tracking measurements including range, range rate, and Doppler)
- S-Band Occultation (not a separate instrument; experiment observed the attenuation of the communication signal as the orbiting satellite passed out of view)
- Infrared Radiometer (IRR)
- Visual Imaging System
Achievements
Spacecraft
A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....
to orbit
Orbit
In physics, an orbit is the gravitationally curved path of an object around a point in space, for example the orbit of a planet around the center of a star system, such as the Solar System...
another planet
Planet
A planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
. It carried an instrument payload similar to Mariner 6 and 7
Mariner 6 and 7
As part of NASA's wider Mariner program, Mariner 6 and Mariner 7 completed the first dual mission to Mars in 1969. Mariner 6 was launched from Launch Complex 36B at Cape Kennedy and Mariner 7 from Launch Complex 36A at Cape Kennedy...
, but, because of the need for a larger propulsion system to control the spacecraft in Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
orbit, it weighed more than Mariners 6 and 7 combined. When Mariner 9 arrived at Mars, the atmosphere was so dust
Dust
Dust consists of particles in the atmosphere that arise from various sources such as soil dust lifted up by wind , volcanic eruptions, and pollution...
y that the surface was obscured. This unexpected situation made a strong case for the desirability of studying a planet from orbit rather than merely flying past. Mariner 9's computer was thus programmed from Earth to delay imaging of the surface for a couple of months until the dust settled. After 349 days in orbit, Mariner 9 had transmitted 7,329 images, covering 100% of Mars' surface. The images revealed river
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
beds, crater
Impact crater
In the broadest sense, the term impact crater can be applied to any depression, natural or manmade, resulting from the high velocity impact of a projectile with a larger body...
s, massive extinct volcano
Volcano
2. Bedrock3. Conduit 4. Base5. Sill6. Dike7. Layers of ash emitted by the volcano8. Flank| 9. Layers of lava emitted by the volcano10. Throat11. Parasitic cone12. Lava flow13. Vent14. Crater15...
es (such as Olympus Mons
Olympus Mons
Olympus Mons is a large volcanic mountain on the planet Mars. At a height of almost , it is one of the tallest mountains in the Solar System, three times as tall as Mount Everest and more than twice the height of Mauna Kea the tallest mountain on Earth. Olympus Mons is the youngest of the large...
, the largest known volcano in the Solar System
Solar System
The Solar System consists of the Sun and the astronomical objects gravitationally bound in orbit around it, all of which formed from the collapse of a giant molecular cloud approximately 4.6 billion years ago. The vast majority of the system's mass is in the Sun...
), canyon
Canyon
A canyon or gorge is a deep ravine between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Rivers have a natural tendency to reach a baseline elevation, which is the same elevation as the body of water it will eventually drain into. This forms a canyon. Most canyons were formed by a process of...
s (including the Valles Marineris
Valles Marineris
Valles Marineris is a system of canyons that runs along the Martian surface east of the Tharsis region...
, a system of canyons over about 2500 miles (4,023.4 km) long), evidence of wind and water erosion
Erosion
Erosion is when materials are removed from the surface and changed into something else. It only works by hydraulic actions and transport of solids in the natural environment, and leads to the deposition of these materials elsewhere...
and deposition, weather fronts, fog
Fog
Fog is a collection of water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air at or near the Earth's surface. While fog is a type of stratus cloud, the term "fog" is typically distinguished from the more generic term "cloud" in that fog is low-lying, and the moisture in the fog is often generated...
s, and more. Mars' tiny moon
Natural satellite
A natural satellite or moon is a celestial body that orbits a planet or smaller body, which is called its primary. The two terms are used synonymously for non-artificial satellites of planets, of dwarf planets, and of minor planets....
s, Phobos
Phobos (moon)
Phobos is the larger and closer of the two natural satellites of Mars. Both moons were discovered in 1877. With a mean radius of , Phobos is 7.24 times as massive as Deimos...
and Deimos
Deimos (moon)
Deimos is the smaller and outer of Mars's two moons . It is named after Deimos, a figure representing dread in Greek Mythology. Its systematic designation is '.-Discovery:Deimos was discovered by Asaph Hall, Sr...
, were also photographed. The findings from the Mariner 9 missions underpinned the later Viking program
Viking program
The Viking program consisted of a pair of American space probes sent to Mars, Viking 1 and Viking 2. Each spacecraft was composed of two main parts, an orbiter designed to photograph the surface of Mars from orbit, and a lander designed to study the planet from the surface...
.
The enormous Valles Marineris
Valles Marineris
Valles Marineris is a system of canyons that runs along the Martian surface east of the Tharsis region...
canyon system is named after Mariner 9 in honor of its achievements.
After depleting its supply of attitude control gas, the spacecraft was turned off on October 27, 1972.
Construction
The ultravioletUltraviolet
Ultraviolet light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays, in the range 10 nm to 400 nm, and energies from 3 eV to 124 eV...
spectrometer
Spectrometer
A spectrometer is an instrument used to measure properties of light over a specific portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, typically used in spectroscopic analysis to identify materials. The variable measured is most often the light's intensity but could also, for instance, be the polarization...
aboard Mariner 9 was constructed by the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
The Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics is a research organization at the University of Colorado at Boulder. LASP is a research institute with over 100 research scientists ranging in fields from solar influences, to Earth's and other planetary atmospherics processes, space weather, space...
at the University of Colorado
University of Colorado at Boulder
The University of Colorado Boulder is a public research university located in Boulder, Colorado...
, Boulder, Colorado
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
. The ultraviolet spectrometer team was led by Professor Charles Barth.
The Infrared Interferometer Spectrometer (IRIS) team was led by Dr. Rudolf A. Hanel from NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center (GSFC). The IRIS instrument was built by Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments Inc. , widely known as TI, is an American company based in Dallas, Texas, United States, which develops and commercializes semiconductor and computer technology...
, Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
.
The Infrared Radiometer (IRR) team was led by Professor Gerald Neugebauer from the California Institute of Technology
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
(Caltech).
Error Correction Codes achievements
A Hadamard codeHadamard code
The Hadamard code is an error-correcting code that is used for error detection and correction when transmitting messages over very noisy or unreliable channels....
was used during the 1971 Mariner 9 mission to correct for picture transmission errors. The data words used during this mission were 6 bit
Bit
A bit is the basic unit of information in computing and telecommunications; it is the amount of information stored by a digital device or other physical system that exists in one of two possible distinct states...
s long, which represented 64 grayscale
Grayscale
In photography and computing, a grayscale or greyscale digital image is an image in which the value of each pixel is a single sample, that is, it carries only intensity information...
values.
Because of limitations of the quality of the alignment of the transmitter the maximum useful data length was about 30 bits. Instead of using a repetition code
Repetition code
In coding theory, the repetition code is one of the most basic error-correcting codes. In order to transmit a message over a noisy channel that may corrupt the transmission in a few places, the idea of the repetition code is to just repeat the message several times. The hope is that the channel...
, a [32, 6, 16] Hadamard code was used. Errors of up to 7 bits per word could be corrected using this scheme.
Compared to a 5-repetition code, the error correcting properties of this Hadamard code are much better, yet its rate is comparable. The efficient decoding algorithm
Algorithm
In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm is an effective method expressed as a finite list of well-defined instructions for calculating a function. Algorithms are used for calculation, data processing, and automated reasoning...
was an important factor in the decision to use this code. The circuitry used was called the "Green Machine". It employed the fast Fourier transform
Fast Fourier transform
A fast Fourier transform is an efficient algorithm to compute the discrete Fourier transform and its inverse. "The FFT has been called the most important numerical algorithm of our lifetime ." There are many distinct FFT algorithms involving a wide range of mathematics, from simple...
which can increase the decoding speed by a factor of 3.
Present location
Mariner 9 will remain in a stable Mars orbit until at least 2022, after which the spacecraft will enter the Martian atmosphere and either burn up or fall down to the planet's surface.See also
- Exploration of MarsExploration of MarsThe exploration of Mars has been an important part of the space exploration programs of the Soviet Union, the United States, Europe, and Japan. Dozens of robotic spacecraft, including orbiters, landers, and rovers, have been launched toward Mars since the 1960s...
- Space explorationSpace explorationSpace exploration is the use of space technology to explore outer space. Physical exploration of space is conducted both by human spaceflights and by robotic spacecraft....
- Unmanned space missions