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Diverse Rock Named "Squash"

Aug. 8, 1997
This image from NASA's Sojourner rover's right front camera was taken on Sol 27. The Pathfinder lander is seen at middle left. The large rock at right, nicknamed 'Squash,' exhibits a diversity of textures. Sol 1 began on July 4, 1997.

This image from the Sojourner rover's right front camera was taken on Sol 27. The Pathfinder lander is seen at middle left. The large rock at right, nicknamed "Squash," exhibits a diversity of textures. It looks very similar to a conglomerate, a type of rock found on Earth that forms from sedimentary processes.

Mars Pathfinder is the second in NASA's Discovery program of low-cost spacecraft with highly focused science goals. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, developed and managed the Mars Pathfinder mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).

Photojournal note: Sojourner spent 83 days of a planned seven-day mission exploring the Martian terrain, acquiring images, and taking chemical, atmospheric and other measurements. The final data transmission received from Pathfinder was at 10:23 UTC on September 27, 1997. Although mission managers tried to restore full communications during the following five months, the successful mission was terminated on March 10, 1998.

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