Astronomy Picture of the Day ·

Mars Polar Lander Target Ellipse

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for December 4, 1999 is “Mars Polar Lander Target Ellipse,” an image. It is credited to Malin Space Science Systems, MGS, JPL, NASA. The original explanation runs about 131 words.

Mars Polar Lander Target Ellipse
Credit: Malin Space Science Systems, MGS, JPL, NASA Shown from science.nasa.gov. Not hosted by OpenOrbit.

From the explanation

“South is up in this recent composite color picture of Mars Polar Lander’s target region near the Martian South Pole taken on November 28. Imaged by the orbiting Mars Global Surveyor’s wide angle camera, the area covered is 105 kilometers across with the expected landing ellipse superposed.”

— APOD editors, December 4, 1999

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date
December 4, 1999
Type
Image
Credit
Credit: Malin Space Science Systems, MGS, JPL, NASA
Copyright
No copyright notice on the entry. Check the credited institution’s own usage rules before reusing it.
Explanation length
About 131 words

All of December 1999 → · 1999 by month → · Full archive since 1995 →

Topics in this entry

Mars

Topics are matched from words in the title and explanation.

On this day: December 4 in other years

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Source

Copy taken Oct 28, 2026, 2:39 AM EDT. The image and explanation belong to their creators. OpenOrbit is not affiliated with or endorsed by NASA.