Optical Atmospheric Effects As Viewed By The Msl Chemcam Remote Micro-Imager.
S. A. Los, H. E. Newsom, L. A. Scuderi, University Of New Mexico, Department Of Earth & Planetary Sciences,
Albuquerque, New Mexico, Usa.

Introduction

The Mars Science Laboratory (Msl) Remote Microimager (Rmi) Has A High-Resolution And Highly Limited Field-Of-View Designed For Close-Up Observations Of
Chemcam Sample Targets [1]. Yet With Its Long Focallength, Rmi Has Proven Increasingly Useful For Capturing Long-Distance (100s M - 10s Km) Imagery Of Geomorphological Features [2]. In The Time Since Msl’S
Landing In Gale Crater, Significant Improvements Have
Been Made To Rmi Image Processing Procedures Using
Masking To Diminish Light Scattering And Image Stacking
To Resample To A Higher Resolution [3]. However, Image Aberrations Of Unknown Cause Persist. Given Long
Light Paths Through The Atmosphere At High Magnification, Rmi Long-Distance Imagery Are Particularly Sensitive, Compared To Other Msl Imagers, To Various Atmospheric Optical Effects. Highly Variable Line-Of-Sight
Opacity From Dust Aerosols Can Often Affect Viewing Conditions, In Extreme Cases Obscuring The Crater Rim And
The Majority Of Nearby Aeolis Palus During Global Dust
Events [4]. Though Fogs Are Unlikely Given Relative Humidities Observed At Gale Crater, Enhancement Of Dust
Haze By Water-Ice Coating Of Dust Aerosols May Be Possible As Well [5]. In Addition To Opacity Variations, A Less
Explored Impact On Imagery Is That Of Thermal Effects
From Strong Daytime Temperature Gradients Present Near
The Surface [6]. Though Theoretically Possible, It Remains