Lunae Palus quadrangle

Lunae Palus quadrangle
Map of Lunae Palus quadrangle from Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) data. The highest elevations are red and the lowest are blue.
Coordinates15°00′N 67°30′W / 15°N 67.5°W / 15; -67.5
Image of the Lunae Palus Quadrangle (MC-10). The central part includes Lunae Planum which, on the west and north borders, is dissected by Kasei Valles which, in turn, terminates in Chryse Planitia.

The Lunae Palus quadrangle is one of a series of 30 quadrangle maps of Mars used by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Astrogeology Research Program. The quadrangle is also referred to as MC-10 (Mars Chart-10).[1] Lunae Planum and parts of Xanthe Terra and Chryse Planitia are found in the Lunae Palus quadrangle. The Lunae Palus quadrangle contains many ancient river valleys.

The quadrangle covers the area from 45° to 90° west longitude and 0° to 30° north latitude on Mars. The Viking 1 Lander (part of Viking program) landed in the quadrangle on July 20, 1976, at 22°24′N 47°30′W / 22.4°N 47.5°W / 22.4; -47.5. It was the first robot spacecraft to successfully land on the Red Planet.[2]

  1. ^ Davies, M.E.; Batson, R.M.; Wu, S.S.C. “Geodesy and Cartography” in Kieffer, H.H.; Jakosky, B.M.; Snyder, C.W.; Matthews, M.S., Eds. Mars. University of Arizona Press: Tucson, 1992.
  2. ^ On Mars: Exploration of the Red Planet. 1958–1978, SP-4212. (NASA)