This image shows Rocks explored by the Rover.
Click on image for full size
Image from: JPL/NASA

Related links:

Return to the Exploration of Mars

Mars Pathfinder Image Archive

Rocks explored by the Rover

This diagram shows the path traveled by the Mars Pathfinder Rover during its 80 day mission. During its travels, the Rover took measurements at a number of different rocks. These measurements helped scientists classify the rocks.

These rocks were scattered all around the Pathfinder landing site. The Rover visited many rocks. Scientists gave them names like: Pop Tart, Ender, mini-Matterhorn, Wedge, Baker's Bench, Flat Top, and the Broken Wall. We will not show you all the rocks visited by the Rover, only the few listed below. Rocks not in this list can be found in the Mars Pathfinder Image Archive.


You might also be interested in:

Yogi

Yogi was the second rock to be explored by the Rover. It was about 1 meter tall. Are you taller than the Yogi rock on Mars? ...more

The Shark

The slanted rock shown here was named The Shark. The Shark, Half Dome, and Moe are all rocks which were slanted. The slant seemed to show that water once flowed once in the area, and deposited a bunch...more

Barnacle Bill

Barnacle Bill was the first rock to be explored by the Rover. It was found north by northwest of the Mars Pathfinder lander. Barnacle Bill was a dark rock. It had many small holes over its surface (vesicles)...more

Martian Weathering by Wind and Sand

Sand is lifted and carried into the air by winds. The general process by which this occurs is called "saltation". Saltation becomes very powerful during the frequent Martian global dust storms. The rock...more

The Mermaid Dune

During the Mars Pathfinder Rover's exploration of the Martian surface, it went over what scientists now call the "Mermaid Dune". The soil on top of Mermaid Dune seemed to be dark gray. However, when the...more

Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information. NASA ESIP NCSE HHMI AGU AGI AMS NOAA