{"id":2244,"date":"2020-04-01T18:00:36","date_gmt":"2020-04-01T18:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/?p=2244"},"modified":"2020-04-01T18:00:37","modified_gmt":"2020-04-01T18:00:37","slug":"exploring-mars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/2020\/04\/01\/exploring-mars\/","title":{"rendered":"Exploring Mars"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>I thought I&#8217;d take this opportunity to share out a recent picture returned by NASA&#8217;s Curiosity Rover of its environment. Indeed, although it shows as a single picture, it was in fact assembled from over a thousand separate images, carefully aligned each with the next in order to give a composite panorama.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.jpl.nasa.gov\/images\/msl\/20200304\/PIA23623-16.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jpl.nasa.gov\/images\/msl\/20200304\/PIA23623-16.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><\/a><figcaption>Panorama taken by Curiosity Rover (NASA\/JPL)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>There&#8217;s also a YouTube video exploring this in more detail and highlighting particular features &#8211; the link is below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, as well as the intrinsic interest of this picture, it has also been fun for me to locate it in relation to some of the Martian locations used in my novel <em>Timing<\/em>, part of which is set on Mars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"520\" src=\"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/MartianSItes-1024x520.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2245\" srcset=\"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/MartianSItes-1024x520.png 1024w, http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/MartianSItes-300x152.png 300w, http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/MartianSItes-768x390.png 768w, http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/MartianSItes-1536x780.png 1536w, http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/MartianSItes-2048x1041.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Martian sites &#8211; base map from NASA\/JPL with annotations<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Olympus Mons is the largest mountain on Mars &#8211; the second highest that we know of in the entire solar system. In Timing, the main characters Mitnash Thakur and his AI persona assistant Slate first investigate a finance training school close to Olympus Mons, and subsequently visit a gambling house in a settlement on Elysium Planitia. Curiosity, and the panorama picture, is right at the edge of Elysium Planitia. So the terrain in that part of <em>Timing <\/em>would be not unlike the Curiosity picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The following extract from Timing is when Mitnash and Slate arrive on Mars, having taken a shuttle down from the moon Phobos. But before that, here&#8217;s the link to the video I mentioned (https:\/\/youtu.be\/X2UaFuJsqxk).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Curiosity Mars Rover Snaps 1.8 Billion-Pixel Panorama (narrated video)\" width=\"474\" height=\"267\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/X2UaFuJsqxk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Extract from Timing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The shuttle had peaked in its hop, and was now descending again. The pilot had flicked the forward view up on one of the screens, so we could all enjoy the sight of the second tallest mountain in the solar system. All twenty-two kilometres of it. We were already below the level of the summit. Gordii Fossae, where the training college was located, was behind the right flank from this angle, and I didn\u2019t expect to see it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Before long we were grounding at the dock. I stood up, and was treated to some curious looks from the remaining passengers. I was the only one alighting here. At a guess, it was not a popular stop \u2013 those hardy souls who wanted to bag the summit of Olympus would normally take a different route altogether, first to Lycus Sulci basecamp, then up and over the scarp before trekking to the peak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I went through into the reception hall with the minimum of bureaucratic fuss, targeted on all sides by glossy ads inviting me to sample the pleasures of Martian laissez faire. Then after the last gate, the narrow entrance tunnel opened into a wider dome, and there was a heavy-set man with dark hair waiting, looking slightly bored. Seeing me, he stepped forward and held out a hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cMitnash Thakur? I\u2019m Teemu Kalas. Welcome to Gordii Fossae.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Teemu insisted on taking my bag, though it was hardly a burden, and we chatted idly as he ushered me through several linked domes to a long hall. He had a heavy, northern European accent. I couldn\u2019t decide if he made everything sound very serious, or a complete joke. Slate whispered to me that he was one of the two vice-principals of the training centre. He opened a locker, pulled out two suits and passed one to me, gesturing to the airlock nearby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cHere you are, Mitnash. We got your size from your persona. Slate, she\u2019s called, isn\u2019t she? Now, be warned that it\u2019s not a perfect fit. Should be close enough though. And it\u2019s the nearest we had, anyway. I\u2019ll signal the truck to attach to the lock by concertina, but we always wear suits on the journey. Protocol, you know.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cHow far is the school from here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAbout ten kilometres to the main teaching block. A little bit further to the dormitory entrance where I\u2019ll be taking you. A lot can happen on a journey like that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He glanced to see how I was fastening the suit and seemed satisfied. We left the lids open, but ready to snap down if need be. Then we cycled through the lock and into a vehicle. At a guess, it was about the size of a small bus. The engine was already filling the cabin with an electric hum, and after a couple of checks he tapped a toggle and leaned back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The windows looked out on a set of very large tyres on either side, but beyond that, the Martian landscape stretched away to the horizon, drab and dusty, with jagged blackish bands of rock emerging from the sand at intervals. On our right, the slopes of Olympus Mons stretched hugely up into the pale sky. At this point, the scarp which was so prominent around most of the northern rim dipped down, to merge smoothly into the surrounding terrain as you continued on south. It still looked fearsome just here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThere. The onboard system will get us the rest of the way. It\u2019s twenty minutes from here. I\u2019ve got the centre Sarsen twins supervising it just in case, but it\u2019s hardly a new journey. Now, you\u2019ll have a lot of questions, but Mikko \u2013 that\u2019s Mikko Pulkkinen, the principal \u2013 said to wait for all that until he meets you tomorrow. The rest of today is yours, to get acclimatised. You\u2019ll get more tired than you expect. Been on Phobos long?\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I thought I&#8217;d take this opportunity to share out a recent picture returned by NASA&#8217;s Curiosity Rover of its environment. Indeed, although it shows as a single picture, it was in fact assembled from over a thousand separate images, carefully aligned each with the next in order to give a composite panorama. There&#8217;s also a &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/2020\/04\/01\/exploring-mars\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Exploring Mars<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2047,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41,20,54,43],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2244","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-science","category-science-fiction","category-space","category-timing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2244","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2244"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2244\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2247,"href":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2244\/revisions\/2247"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2047"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2244"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2244"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/richardabbott.datascenesdev.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2244"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}