NSSDCA ID: PSPG-00795
Availability: Archived at NSSDC, accessible from elsewhere
This description was generated automatically using input from the Planetary Data System.
Data Set Overview ================= The Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) spacecraft included a laser altimeter instrument. The primary objective of the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) is to determine globally the topography of Mars at a level suitable for addressing problems in geology and geophysics.
This data set is a topographic map of Mars at a resolution of 0.25 by 0.25 degrees, based on altimetry data acquired by the Mars Global Surveyor MOLA instrument and accumulated over the course of the mission so far. The MOLA Precision Experiment Data Records (PEDRs) are the source for this data set. The map is in the form of an ASCII table with one row for each 0.25 by 0.25 degree latitude-longitude bin, from 90 to -90 degrees latitude and from 0 to 360 degrees longitude. The binned data include all MOLA nadir observations from the Orbit Insertion phase, plus Mapping Phase nadir observations from the beginning of mapping through June 1, 2000 when MOLA was turned off for solar conjunction. Additionally, off-nadir observations of the north pole during the Orbit Insertion Phase are included from 87 N latitude and northward, taken during the spring of 1998, and of both poles taken in July of 1999, from 87 N and S to the poles. Orbits 355 and 358 of the Orbit Insertion Phase and parts of orbits 10709 through 10716, inclusive, of the Mapping Phase are excluded because solutions for these orbits are deemed to be poor. (Note: subtract 10000 from a MOLA mapping phase orbit number to determine the equivalent MGS Project orbit number.) Also excluded are shots more than 1 degree off-nadir (except as noted above), channel 4 returns, and any returns not classified as ground returns, e.g. clouds or noise, according to the SHOT_CLASSIFICATION_CODE. A total of approximately 333 million observations are represented.
These data are available on-line from the Planetary Data System (PDS) at:
http://pds-geosciences.wustl.edu/GEO/mgs-m-mola-5-iegdr-l3-v1/mgsl_2xxx/
Questions and comments about this data collection can be directed to: Dr. David R. Williams
Name | Role | Original Affiliation | |
---|---|---|---|
Dr. David E. Smith | Data Provider | NASA Goddard Space Flight Center | david.e.smith@nasa.gov |
Dr. David E. Smith | General Contact | NASA Goddard Space Flight Center | david.e.smith@nasa.gov |