Syrtis Major quadrangle

Syrtis Major quadrangle
Map of Syrtis Major quadrangle from Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) data. The highest elevations are red and the lowest are blue.
Coordinates15°00′N 292°30′W / 15°N 292.5°W / 15; -292.5
Image of the Syrtis Major Quadrangle (MC-13). The central part contains Syrtis Major Planum. The east includes Isidis basin and the west and north includes heavily cratered highlands.

The Syrtis Major quadrangle is one of a series of 30 quadrangle maps of Mars used by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Astrogeology Research Program. The Syrtis Major quadrangle is also referred to as MC-13 (Mars Chart-13).[1]

The quadrangle covers longitudes 270° to 315° west and latitudes 0° to 30° north on Mars. Syrtis Major quadrangle includes Syrtis Major Planum and parts of Terra Sabaea and Isidis Planitia.

Syrtis Major is an old shield volcano with a central depression that is elongated in a north–south direction. It contains the calderas Meroe Patera and Nili Patera.[2] Interesting features in the area include dikes and inverted terrain.

The Beagle 2 lander was about to land near the quadrangle, particularly in the eastern part of Isidis Planitia, in December 2003, when contact with the craft was lost. In January 2015, NASA reported the Beagle 2 had been found on the surface in Isidis Planitia (location is about 11°31′35″N 90°25′46″E / 11.5265°N 90.4295°E / 11.5265; 90.4295).[3][4] High-resolution images captured by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter identified the lost probe, which appears to be intact.[5][6][7]

In November 2018, NASA announced that Jezero crater was chosen as the landing site for the planned Mars 2020 rover mission.[8][9] Jezero crater is in the Syrtis Major quadrangle at (at 18°51′18″N 77°31′08″E / 18.855°N 77.519°E / 18.855; 77.519)[10]

  1. ^ Davies, M. E.; Batson, R. M.; Wu, S. S. C. (1992). "Geodesy and Cartography". In Kieffer, H. H.; Jakosky, B. M.; Snyder, C. W.; Matthews, M. S. (eds.). Mars. Tucson: University of Arizona Press. ISBN 0-8165-1257-4.
  2. ^ Darling, David. "Syrtis Major". www.daviddarling.info.
  3. ^ Ellison, Doug (16 January 2015). "re Beagle 2 location on Mars => "Using HiView on image ESP_039308_1915_COLOR.JP2 I get 90.4295E 11.5265N"". Twitter & JPL. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  4. ^ Grecicius, Tony; Dunbar, Brian (16 January 2015). "Components of Beagle 2 Flight System on Mars". NASA. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
  5. ^ Webster, Guy (16 January 2015). "'Lost' 2003 Mars Lander Found by Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter". NASA. Archived from the original on 24 February 2017. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  6. ^ "Mars Orbiter Spots Beagle 2, European Lander Missing Since 2003". New York Times. Associated Press. 16 January 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
  7. ^ Amos, Jonathan (16 January 2015). "Lost Beagle2 probe found 'intact' on Mars". BBC. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  8. ^ Wall, Mike (19 November 2018). "Jezero Crater or Bust! NASA Picks Landing Site for Mars 2020 Rover". Space.com. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  9. ^ Mandelbaum, Ryan F. "NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Will Land in Jezero Crater". Gizmodo. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference HR-20080606 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).