Mars Rover Site Selection
Space Studies researchers Scot Rafkin and Timothy Michaels played a key role in the landing site selection for the Mars Exploration Rovers. Using a state-of-the-art numerical model of Mars' atmosphere, Rafkin and Michaels identified localized regions of strong, low-level winds and wind shear that could prove catastrophic during the entry, descent and landing of the rovers. Preliminary descent data returned from the first rover, Spirit, indicates that the spacecraft did encounter moderate winds and wind shear as predicted by the models, and it was necessary to fire horizontally directed rockets to compensate for the wind. Prior to this work, which is presented in the special Mars Exploration Rover edition of the Journal of Geophysical Research, the effect of Mars' winds on passive landing systems was underappreciated.
A west-to-east cross-section through Gusev Crater, near the landing site of the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit. The crater basin is in the centered at X=0., and the crater rims are evident approximately 100 km from the center of the basin. Arrows indicate the direction of the wind in the plane of the cross-section. The length of the arrows indicates the wind speed, which is also indicated by the shaded colors. Black contour lines indicate turbulence levels. Regions of moderately strong winds and wind shear are clearly evident in the lowest 6 to 8 km of the atmosphere. The data is produced from the Mars Regional Atmospheric Modeling System.
This animation depicts the turbulence within the convective boundary layer of Mars that can be expected at the Opportunity Rover landing site in Meridiani Plenum. Unlike Gusev Crater, the primary atmospheric hazards at this location are the intense updrafts and downdrafts, and narrow but intense regions of turbulence at the edges of rising thermals. This animation was produced from the Mars Regional Atmospheric Modeling System.