Wikipedia:Featured picture candidates/Mars Spirit rover

Mars Spirit Rover

Voting period is over. Please don't add any new votes. Voting period ends on 4 Jun 2011 at 16:35:12 (UTC)

Original - Dusty Solar Panels on Spirit The deck of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit is so dusty that the rover almost blends into the dusty background in this image assembled from frames taken by the panoramic camera (Pancam) during the period from Spirit's Sol 1,355 through Sol 1,358 (Oct. 26-29, 2007). Dust on the solar panels reduces the amount of electrical power the rover can generate from sunlight each sol. Earlier self-portraits by Spirit, such as one taken on Sol 586, offer a comparison view of cleaner solar panels. The vertical projection used here produces the best view of the rover deck, though it distorts the ground and antennas somewhat. The eight-pointed star shape near the front of the rover (bottom of the image) marks the location of the camera mast, which is out of view of the Pancam atop the mast. This mosaic view in approximate true color is a composite of frames taken through the Pancam's filters centered on wavelengths of 600 nanometers, 530 nanometers and 480 nanometers.

Alt 1

Reason: Reasonably irreplaceable, high resolution, technical flaws excusable, given the shooting conditions.
Articles in which this image appears: Cleaning event, Mars Exploration Rover, Spirit rover
FP category for this image: Wikipedia:Featured_pictures/Space/Looking_out?
Creator: NASA

Support as nominator --Aaadddaaammm (talk) 16:35, 26 May 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Support This'd be perfect if there was a similar shot taken when it was clean to compare it with though. JJ Harrison (talk) 22:44, 26 May 2011 (UTC)[reply]
- For your interest, there's this shot [1], but it's never going to be a FP. Aaadddaaammm (talk) 11:51, 27 May 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Related cartoon [2]. I really do feel sorry for the little rover. Aaadddaaammm (talk) 08:16, 28 May 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Support I had the same thought as JJ, though. Cowtowner (talk) 18:56, 28 May 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Oppose. It's kind of interesting, but I'm not really buying the EV (yeah, so the panels get dirty...), and I don't like the projection and composite image. --jjron (talk) 09:41, 29 May 2011 (UTC)[reply]
- The fact that the panels got dirty was ultimately the reason for the rover's demise. We have a whole article on the fact that the panels get dirty (Cleaning event) so I think its EV is well justified. Also, the projection and composite are more or less inevitable. The only way to get a photograph of the rover on Mars is for it to do it from the overhead camera. Cowtowner (talk) 00:35, 30 May 2011 (UTC)[reply]
  - Yeah, I checked that before voting. The article is on (as its name suggests) the cleaning event, not the dirty rover, and this doesn't show the cleaning at all (and FWIW, having now looked closer I'm starting to question the WP:NOTABILITY of that article - the key claim for its inclusion seems to be that "The term cleaning event is used on several NASA webpages"; hmmm, so that qualifies it for an article? Is it actually a meaningful term? But anyway, I digress). And I know this is more specialised, but it's kind of like claiming a picture of a dirty car was high EV for Car wash. --jjron (talk) 03:05, 30 May 2011 (UTC)[reply]
    - Yeah, if the car was on Mars! Aaadddaaammm (talk) 07:18, 30 May 2011 (UTC)[reply]
      - These comments illustrate why a clean companion shot would be so nice. JJ Harrison (talk) 23:24, 30 May 2011 (UTC)[reply]
        Such an image does exist, the question is, where is the original? Although I would argue even having a smaller version would increase the EV of this one. Cowtowner (talk) 02:44, 1 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]
        Found it. Will add to article. Cowtowner (talk) 02:47, 1 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]
        Added to article and nomination. Support Alt 1, (or the nomination as a set). Cowtowner (talk) 02:58, 1 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Not Promoted --Makeemlighter (talk) 03:50, 5 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]