Rocky Martian Plain [Large Format

Large format vintage gelatin silver print on resin coated Kodak paper, with 'This Paper Manufactured By Kodak' watermarks to verso and ink annotation 'P 17689'. A rare large format panorama of Mars from the Viking 2 lander. [NASA caption online] The rocky Martian plain surrounding Viking 2 is seen in high resolution in this 85-degree panorama sweeping from north at the left to east at right during the Martian afternoon on September 5. Large blocks litter the surface. Some are porous, sponge-like rocks like the one at the left edge (size estimate: 1 1⁄2 to 2 feet); others are dense and fine-grained, such as the very bright rounded block (1 to 1 1⁄2 feet across) toward lower right. Pebbled surface between the rocks is covered in places by small drifts of very fine material similar to drifts seen at the Viking 1 landing site some 4600 miles to the southwest. The fine-grained material is banked up behind some rocks, but wind tails seen by Viking 1 are not well-developed here. On the right horizon, flat-topped ridges or hills are illuminated by the afternoon sun. Slope of the horizon is due to the 8-degree tilt of the spacecraft.

Estimate:$4,000

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