DESCRIPTION

Viking 1 Landing Site
(Normal View)
Chryse Planitia, Mars

This 3-D view of the martian surface was obtained by the Viking 1 lander in July 1976. It features a rock-strewn, gently rolling landscape. The largest rocks in this view are 1 to 2 meters across. This view spans roughly 220° of the horizon.

Viking 1 landed (22.3 S, 48.0 W) roughly 300 kilometers east of Maja and Vedra Valles, two outflow channels that emptied into Chryse Planitia. Floodwaters from these channels probably flowed over this site several billion years ago. Windblown dunes have formed in this area since that time.

NOTE: This view is a "natural" view and shows how the Viking landers saw the surface. A "corrected" version allows the viewer to see most of the scene in front of the lander. The lander cameras were positioned nearly 1 meter apart, in contrast to the spacing between human eyes, which is only 65 millimeters. This large separation makes these scenes difficult to view. (Focus on rocks midway between the horizon and the bottom of the image. Slowly drift your view to other parts of the scene, allowing your eyes to adapt as you do so.)