Computer Science – Performance
Scientific paper
Dec 2003
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2003agufm.p21a..01p&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2003, abstract #P21A-01
Computer Science
Performance
5464 Remote Sensing, 5494 Instruments And Techniques
Scientific paper
The 2001 Mars Odyssey orbital science mission officially began in late February, 2002. The spacecraft carries three science instrument packages: the Gamma Ray Spectrometer suite (GRS), the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS), and the Martian Radiation Environment Experiment (MARIE). The GRS suite of three instruments includes the Gamma Sensor Subsystem (GSS), the Neutron Spectrometer (NS) and the High Energy Neutron Detector (HEND). Spacecraft and instrument performance have been nominal to this point in the science mission. Gamma and neutron observations of the high latitudes have been used to identify water-ice-rich soil to 1 m depth at latitudes poleward of 60 degrees north and south. Enigmatic deposits of hydrogen have been identified in mid-latitudes, with water equivalent mass fractions of 2-10%. Gamma ray emission maps for six elements have been constructed, and analysis is ongoing. THEMIS daytime and nighttime infrared imaging shows a remarkable diversity of temperature signatures of surface materials, suggesting that THEMIS will truly provide a "new view" of Mars. An extensive campaign of visible imaging has resulted in a complete map of the south polar layered deposits at 36 m/pixel resolution. The MARIE instrument has detected radiation signatures from the high solar activity during the first 18 months of operations, including events with significantly different signatures at Mars and Earth. The mean local solar time of the Odyssey orbit has been in a slow drift since the start of mapping. An orbit trim maneuver to freeze the mean local solar time at a value of approximately 5:00 was to be executed late in 2003. In early 2004, the orbiter will serve as a data relay platform for the Mars Exploration Rovers, and as a supplement to the Mars Express relay for the Beagle 2 lander. Odyssey's nominal science mission will extend for 917 days, until August, 2004. Extended mission operations appear to be feasible, given the current inventory of propellant. Goals for a possible extended mission include inter-annual comparative observations, global high resolution mapping by the THEMIS visible camera, and synergistic science and operations support for other Mars missions.
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