1865 Cerberus

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

L. Kohoutek

Discovery site

Bergedorf Obs.

Discovery date

26 October 1971

Pronunciation

/ ˈ s ɜːr b ər ə s /

Named after

Cerberus ( Greek mythology )

Alternative designations

1971 UA

Minor planet category

NEO · Apollo

Adjectives

Cerberean, -ian / s ɜːr ˈ b ɪər i ə n /

Observation arc

45.05 yr (16,456 days)

Aphelion

1.5844 AU

Perihelion

0.5757 AU

Semi major axis

1.0801 AU

Orbital period sidereal

1.12 yr (410 days)

Mean anomaly

205.19 °

Mean motion

0° 52 41.16 / day

Inclination

16.095°

Longitude of ascending node

212.93°

Argument of perihelion

325.26°

via Wikipedia infobox