Lunae Palus Quadrangle

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). 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 I 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.

  • Dunes and rocks on Mars, as seen by Viking I Lander. Click on image to see more details.

  • Trenches dug into the Martian surface by the Viking I Lander. The color is fairly accurate with the pink sky. The trenches are in the "Sandy Flats" area of the landing site at Chryse Planitia. The boom holding the meteorology sensors is at left. Click on image to see more details.

Read more about Lunae Palus Quadrangle:  Vallis, River Valleys Observed By Viking Orbiters, Mars Science Laboratory, Kasei Valles, Deltas, Craters, Fossa, Gallery