Second Run For Mariner Photographs

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30811, 24 July 1965, Page 15

Second Run For Mariner Photographs

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) PASADENA (California), July 23. Scientists today decided to call on Mariner IV to re-run its series of close-up pictures of the planet Mars.

The first series will be completed on Saturday. Jet Propulsion Laboratory scientists also disclosed that they expect to receive 22 tines of picture No. 22 before the vehicle’s tape recorder runs out. “There's a possibility we might see the dark edge of the planet on the last picture,” a J.P.L. spokesman said. He said the camera was able to adjust to varying light conditions to a limited extent on its July 14 transit of the "red” planet. The eighteenth photo in the series was transmitted tonight. It was the last in the 4000-mile panoramic sweep across Mars in which an area completely bathed in sunlight was shown.

The shadow of night was expected to appear in picture No. 19. Mariner IV was designed to start replaying its tape automatically. The Mariner project manager, Mr Dan Schneiderman, decided today to allow it to do so, thus having a second set of photos to compare against the first set—regarded as highly successful. The encore will take another 10 days. Scientists were "hopeful”

that light from other sources would be enough to reveal features on the darkened 1 side of Mars, allowing at least for the possibility of detecting the planet’s edge, which would appear in a somewhat vertical position, in the final, partial photo.