Friday, January 28, 2011

APOD 3.2

Phobos' South Pole from Mars Express

This is a picture of the south pole of Phobos, the closest moon to Mars.  In fact, it is so close that it is expected to crash into Mars within the next 100 million years!  The moon is covered in circular craters, long chains of craters, and strange streaks.  One of the most well known craters, Stickney Crater, is featured in this photograph.  This photo is so detailed that it shows even items that are only 10 meters across.  This and other similar photos are being used to scope out future landing spots for the Phobos-Grunt Mission.  It is scheduled to launch later this year and return with samples in 2014.  I think it is so incredible that we have the technology to take these pictures and to explore the moons of other planets!

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