173 Ino

Picture of the Day · NASA

Pathfinder on Mars

2026-07-04

On July 4th, 1997, using its own array of fireworks, a parachute, and a cocoon of airbags, the Mars Pathfinder spacecraft bounced like a giant beach ball at least 15 times before it came to rest on the surface of Mars at 10:07 AM Pacific Daylight Time. After its then novel airbag-assisted landing sequence was completed, Pathfinder transmitted this color mosaic to mission operators on Earth. In the scene from another world, the Mars Sojourner robot rover is visible in the foreground, crouched on top of the unfolded Pathfinder. About the size of a large house cat, the six-wheeled, solar-powered Sojourner became the first successful Martian rover. Surrounding Pathfinder are deflated airbags and the rock-strewn terrain of the Ares Vallis floodplain. In the distance Martian hills appear against a dusty brownish sky. The Pathfinder lander was subsequently renamed the Carl Sagan Memorial Station.

via NASA APOD

Key facts

Discovered by

A. Borrelly

Discovery site

Marseille

Discovery date

1 August 1877

Pronunciation

/ ˈ aɪ n oʊ / EYE -noh

Named after

Ἰνώ Īnṓ (Greek mythology)

Alternative designations

A877 PA; 1922 SB

Minor planet category

main-belt · ( middle ) , Ino

Adjectives

Inoan ( / aɪ ˈ n oʊ ə n / eye- NOH -ən )

Observation arc

138.75 yr (50,678 d)

Aphelion

3.3142 AU

Perihelion

2.1708 AU

Semi major axis

2.7425 AU

Orbital period sidereal

4.54 yr (1,659 d)

Mean anomaly

307.27 °

Mean motion

0° 13 1.2 / day

Inclination

14.197°

Longitude of ascending node

148.18°

Argument of perihelion

228.89°

via Wikipedia infobox