NASA’s 2001 Mars Odyssey orbiter captured this unusual view of the Red Planet’s horizon using its THEMIS camera from an altitude of around 250 miles (400 kilometers), or the same altitude at which the ISS orbits Earth.
It was challenging to capture because its Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) is not able pivot, while adjusting the angle of the camera requires changing the position of the entire spacecraft. This meant the team needed to rotate the orbiter almost 90° while making sure the Sun would still shine on the spacecraft’s solar panels, but not on sensitive equipment that could overheat.
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If there were astronauts in orbit over Mars, this is the perspective they would have. No Mars spacecraft has ever had this kind of view before,” said Jonathon Hill of Arizona State University, operations lead for Odyssey’s camera.
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