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Mars Projection Map

Mars Projection Map
This map spans 360 degrees of Mars' surface, starting at a longitude line of 230 degrees on the left edge. It spans nearly to the north and south polar cap regions in Mars' latitude. This map is a composite of images taken with the Hubble Space Telescope's Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 in early December, just weeks before its December 18, 2007 closest approach.

About the Object

  • Distance
    DistanceThe physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.
    Distance from the Sun: The semi-major axis of Mars' orbit about the sun is 1.52 Astronomical Units (A.U.) or 142 million miles (228 million km). Distance from the Earth: At the December 18, 2007 closest approach, Mars was 55 million miles (88 million kilometers) from Earth.

About the Data

  • Data Description
    Data DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
    Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.
    This image was created from the HST proposal 11361: K. Noll (The Hubble Heritage Team, STScI), J. Bell III (Cornell Univ.), M. Wolff (Space Science Institute), H. Bond, C. Christian, L. Frattare, F. Hamilton, Z. Levay, M. Mutchler, and W. Januszewski (Hubble Heritage Team, STScI).
  • Instrument
    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.
    HST>WFPC2
  • Exposure Dates
    Exposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.
    December 2007
  • Filters
    FiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.
    F410M (410 nm), F502N (502 nm), and F673N (673 nm)
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    Mars
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    Planet
  • Release Date
    December 18, 2007
  • Science Release
    Mars: Closest Approach 2007
  • Credit
    NASA, ESA, J. Bell (Cornell University) and M. Wolff (Space Science Institute, Boulder)

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Mars Projection Map
Color Info
Color InfoA brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.

Blue: F410M Green: F502N Red: F673N

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Details

Last Updated
Mar 28, 2025
Contact
Media

Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov