... but where would Marsokhod go? (that is always my chief preoccupation). Nine sites were described, and are shown on this map. One was illustrated in more detail, on the plateau of Aurorae Planum south of Capri Chasma (and very close to some candidate Viking sites). It is site G on the global map. Site E is quite close to Viking 1, site D is near Viking 2. I wouldn't fancy driving a rover near Viking 2. Tomorrow, more Russia.

#maps #mars #marsokhod

Things were tough for Russian space in the 1990s, and several ideas emerged to work with them, including using ICBMs as launch vehicles - such as this:

https://marspapers.org/paper/Lusignan_2000_2.pdf

This report mentions a Marsokhod evolved from the Lunokhods. Another Marsokhod mission was described by the lead author (Bruce Lusignan of Stanford) in 1996. The rover might collect samples for later return to Earth. An orbiter would relay data and might drop penetrators...

#mars #marsokhod