238 Hypatia

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

Viktor Knorre

Discovery date

1 July 1884

Pronunciation

/ h ɪ ˈ p eɪ ʃ i ə /

Named after

Hypatia

Alternative designations

A884 NA, 1947 HA

Minor planet category

Main belt

Adjectives

Hypatian

Observation arc

124.07 yr (45318 d)

Aphelion

3.1652 AU (473.51 Gm )

Perihelion

2.6514 AU (396.64 Gm)

Semi major axis

2.9083 AU (435.08 Gm)

Orbital period sidereal

4.96 yr (1811.5 d )

Average orbital speed

17.47 km/s

Mean anomaly

170.00 °

Mean motion

0° 11 55.392 / day

Inclination

12.413°

Longitude of ascending node

183.89°

Argument of perihelion

210.750°

via Wikipedia infobox