Peer-Reviewed Articles
1129 Initial Results of Rover Localization and Topographic Mapping for the 2003 Mars Exploration Rover Mission
Rongxing Li, Steven W. Squyres, Raymond E. Arvidson, Brent A. Archinal, Jim Bell, Yang Cheng, Larry Crumpler, David J. Des Marais, Kaichang Di, Todd A. Ely, Matt Golombek, Eric Graat, John Grant, Joe Guinn, Andrew Johnson, Ron Greeley, Randolph L. Kirk, Mark Maimone, Larry H. Matthies, Mike Malin, Tim Parker, Mike Sims, Larry A. Soderblom, Shane Thompson, Jue Wang, Patrick Whelley, and Fengliang Xu
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This paper presents the initial results of lander and rover
localization and topographic mapping of the MER 2003
mission (by Sol 225 for Spirit and Sol 206 for Opportunity).
The Spirit rover has traversed a distance of 3.2 km (actual
distance traveled instead of odometry) and Opportunity at
1.2 km. We localized the landers in the Gusev Crater and on
the Meridiani Planum using two-way Doppler radio positioning technology and cartographic triangulations through
landmarks visible in both orbital and ground images. Additional high-resolution orbital images were taken to verify the
determined lander positions. Visual odometry and bundle-adjustment technologies were applied to overcome wheel
slippages, azimuthal angle drift and other navigation errors
(as large as 21 percent). We generated timely topographic
products including 68 orthophoto maps and 3D Digital
Terrain Models, eight horizontal rover traverse maps, vertical
traverse profiles up to Sol 214 for Spirit and Sol 62 for
Opportunity, and five 3D crater models. A web-based landing-site Geographic Information System (GIS) has been set up
at The Ohio State University to update and disseminate the
daily localization and topographic information to support
tactical and strategic operations of the mission. Also described
in this paper are applications of the data for science operations planning, geological traverse survey, survey of wind-related features, and other science applications. The majority
of the instruments onboard both rovers are healthy at this
moment, and they will continue to explore the two landing
sites on the Martian surface. We expect to report further
localization and topographic mapping results to be achieved
in the rest of the mission period and in post-mission data
processing.
1143 Mars Express HRSC Data Processing– Methods and Operational Aspects
F. Scholten, K. Gwinner, T. Roatsch, K.-D. Matz, M. Wählisch, B. Giese, J. Oberst, R. Jaumann, and G. Neukum
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Automated procedures for ground processing of Mars Express
HRSC data have been developed and are applied systematically immediately after download in order to provide calibrated data sets as well as photogrammetric image and 3D
data products within a short time frame. Multi-spectral
orthoimages in scales of 10 m to 50 m/pixel and digital
terrain models of 200 m raster width are generated within
days even for large orbits covering areas of several hundred
thousand square kilometers. An even higher image resolution
of up to 2.3 m/pixel provided by HRSC’s Super Resolution
Channel (SRC) extends the potential of the HRSC camera
experiment.
1153 HRSC on Mars Express – Photogrammetric and Cartographic Research
Joerg Albertz, Maria Attwenger, Janet Barrett, Simon Casley, Peter Dorninger, Egon Dorrer, Heinrich Ebner, Stephan Gehrke, Bernd Giese, Klaus Gwinner, Christian Heipke, Elpitha Howington-Kraus, Randolph L.Kirk, Hartmut Lehmann, Helmut Mayer, Jan-Peter Muller, Juergen Oberst, Alexey Ostrovskiy, Joerg Renter, Sergiy Reznik, Ralph Schmidt, Frank Scholten, Michael Spiegel, Uwe Stilla, Marita Wählisch, Gerhard Neukum, and the HRSC Co-Investigator Team
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The High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on the European
spacecraft Mars Express is the first camera on a planetary
mission especially designed for photogrammetric and cartographic purposes. Since January 2004 the camera has been
taking image data from the Martian surface, characterized
by high-resolution, stereo capability and color. These data
provide an enormous potential for the generation of 3D surface
models, color orthoimages, topographic and thematic maps,
and additional products. The image data acquired undergo
calibration and systematic processing to orthoimages and 3D
data products. Within the international HRSC Science Team
the members of the Photogrammetric/Cartographic Working
Group are concerned with further refinements in order to
achieve highest quality data products. These activities comprise improvements of the exterior orientation of the camera,
various approaches to enhance DTM quality, and the generation of maps in the standard scale of 1:200 000 and larger
scales as well. The paper reports on these activities and the
results achieved so far.
1167 Joint Analysis of Visible and Infrared Images: A “Magic Airbrush” for Qualitative and Quantitative Topography
Randolph L. Kirk, Laurence A. Soderblom, Glen Cushing, and Timothy A. Tituus
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Analysis of data combining daytime visible reflected, daytime
IR emitted, and nighttime IR emitted images allows us to
isolate the physical effects of topography, albedo, and thermal
inertia. To a good approximation, these physical influences
interact linearly so that maps showing topographic shading,
albedo, and relative thermal inertia can be produced by
simple algebraic manipulation of the co-registered images. The
shading map resembles an airbrush, shaded relief portrayal of
the surface, and can be used as the input for quantitative
reconstruction of topography by photoclinometry (shape-from-shading). We demonstrate the method with imagery from the
NASA 2001 Mars Odyssey Thermal Emission Imaging System
(THEMIS), a dataset that could support mapping most of Mars
in this way at 100 m resolution.
1179 Combined Adjustment of MOC Stereo Imagery and MOLA Altimetry Data
Jong-suk Yoon and Jie Shan
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Aboard Mars Global Surveyor (MGS), the Mars Orbiter Laser
Altimeter (MOLA) collects accurate laser altimetry data over
the Martian surface, while the Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC)
acquires high resolution images. Recent studies have found
that certain systematic misregistration exists among these
two types of data due to a number of causes. In this research,
a combined adjustment is proposed to correct such misregistration and accurately determine ground positions. Primary
participants in this process are MOLA ranges and MOLA
ground points, MOC image orientation data, and tie points
collected from the MOC Narrow Angle (NA) stereo images. It
is shown that the combined adjustment is very beneficial
when the trajectory data has a large inconsistency. The
outcome is the refined MOC image orientation and refined
ground positions, which are validated by the improved
MOC and MOLA registration as an independent evaluation.
The theoretic study shows the ground position precision of
the combined adjustment varies from 28 to 178 meters,
depending on the quality of the trajectory data.
1187 Utility of Viking Orbiter Images and Products for Mars Mapping
Mark R. Rosiek, Randolph L. Kirk, Brent A. Archinal, Eliptha Howington-Kraus, Trent Hare, Donna Galuszka, and Bonnie Redding
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This paper reports on mapping procedures developed by the
U.S. Geological Survey that use Viking Orbiter imagery and
Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) derived radii to produce
topographic data. The use of Mosaiced Digital Image Models
(MDIMs), created from Viking Orbiter images, and MOLA data
to provide horizontal and vertical control is reviewed. We
describe procedures to adapt a commercial digital photogrammetric workstation to work with planetary data.
1197 An Analysis of Spacecraft Localization from Descent Image Data for Pinpoint Landing on Mars and Other Cratered Bodies
Adnan Ansar and Yang Cheng
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A pinpoint landing capability will be a critical component for
many planned NASA missions to Mars and beyond. Implicit in
the requirement is the ability to accurately localize the spacecraft with respect to the terrain during descent. In this paper,
we present evidence that a vision-based solution using craters
as landmarks is both practical and will meet the requirements
of next generation missions. Our emphasis in this paper is on
the feasibility of such a system in terms of (a) localization
accuracy and (b) applicability to Martian terrain. We show that
accuracy of well under 100 meters can be expected under
suitable conditions. We also present a sensitivity analysis that
makes an explicit connection between input data and robustness of our pose estimate. In addition, we present an analysis
of the susceptibility of our technique to inherently ambiguous
configurations of craters. We show that probability of failure
due to such ambiguity is becoming increasingly small.
1205 Automated Crater Detection, A New Tool for Mars Cartography and Chronology
Jung Rack Kim, Jan-Peter Muller, Stephan van Gasselt, Jeremy G. Morley, Gerhard Neukum, and the HRSC CoI Team
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An automated crater detection algorithm is presented which
exploits image data. The algorithm is briefly described
and its application demonstrated on a variety of different
Martian geomorphological areas and sensors (Viking Orbiter
Camera, Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC), Mars Orbiter Laser
Altimeter (MOLA), and High Resolution Stereo Camera
(HRSC)). We show assessment results through both an inter-comparison of automated crater locations with those from
the manually-derived Mars Crater Consortium (MCC) catalogue and the manually-derived craters. The detection
algorithm attains an accuracy of 70 to 90 percent and a
quality factor of 60 to 80 percent depending on target sensor
type and geomorphology. We also present crater detection
results derived from HRSC images onboard the ESA Mars
Express on a comparison between manually-determined
Size-Frequency Distributions (SFDs) and those derived fully
automatically. The approach described appears to offer
great potential for chronological research, geomatic and
geological analysis and for other purposes of extra-terrestrial
planetary surface mapping.
1219 ADVISER: Immersive Scientific Visualization Applied to Mars Research and Exploration
James W. Head, III, Andries van Dam, Samuel G. Fulcomer, Andrew Forsberg, Prabhat, Graham Rosser, and Sarah Milkovich
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Geologists explore the Earth at specific surface locations and
then integrate these data using more synoptic approaches. Planetary geoscientists, however, are forced by the nature
of the available data to start from synoptic and orbital
data and work down toward the surface. We describe
Advanced Visualization in Solar System Exploration and
Research (ADVISER), a problem-solving environment that uses
advanced visualization techniques to bridge an important
gap between the cartographic data sets derived by remote
sensing and their application in geoscientific research.
ADVISER integrates and extends state-of-the-art hardware and
software technologies into a set of tools that provide the
planetary geoscientist with the capability to operate and
analyze data and to undertake mapping as if they were on or
near the surface of a planet. Application of these tools (e.g.,
virtual field tools and notebook) to analysis of the north
polar-layered terrain on Mars provides insight into polar cap
formation and evolution and mission planning activities.