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ISPRS 2003 The Messenger Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS): Imaging Strategy at Mercury
The MESSENGER (MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging) spacecraft will launch in March of 2004, beginning a 5-year journey to Mercury. Mercury has been visited by only one spacecraft, Mariner10, making it the least explored terrestrial planet. Mercury is an endmember planet in terms of position, density, and composition, and knowledge of its geology and geophysics is fundamental to understanding the evolution of the inner solar system. The spacecraft will make two flybys of the planet, in July of 2007 and April of 2008, before settling into a year-long orbital mission in April of 2009. MESSENGER will carry a set of miniaturized instruments optimized to investigate such key science questions as the origin of Mercury’s high density, the composition and structure of its crust, the physical properties of its core, the planet’s tectonic and volcanic history, the nature of the radar bright deposits found in craters near the pole, and the characteristics of the planet’s thin atmosphere and miniature magnetosphere. The Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS), a narrow-angle and wide-angle multispectral imager, will map landforms, surface spectral variations, and topographic relief.
- Mimetype
- application/pdf
- Filename
- Prockter_isprs_mar03.pdf
- Publisher
- ISPRS
- Originator
- L. M. Prockter, M. S. Robinson, S. L. Murchie, D. B. J. Bussey, T. Choo, T. R. Watters, Messenger Geology Team
- Group
- Astrogeology
- Added to Astropedia
- 14 May 2012
- Modified
- 7 February 2014
General
- Geospatial Data Presentation Form
- Document
Keywords
- Target
- Mercury
- Mission
Geospatial Information
- Quad Name