The View from Low Orbit
This image of Eros, taken from the NEAR Shoemaker spacecraft on
May 1, 2000, is among the first to be returned from "low orbit."
Between May and August, the spacecraft will orbit at altitudes
near 50 kilometers (31 miles) or less. This will be the prime
period of activity for some of the spacecraft's science
instruments. The X-ray / gamma-ray spectrometer will build up
maps of chemical abundances, while the laser rangefinder measures
the shape of Eros to within meters (a few feet). At the same time
the magnetometer will watch for indications of Eros' magnetic
field and the near-infrared spectrometer will map rock types.
The imager will take pictures of the entire surface of Eros that capture features as small as 4 meters (13 feet) across. This particular image, taken from an orbital altitude of 53 kilometers (33 miles), shows a scene about 1.8 kilometers (1.1 miles) across. Numerous craters and boulders as small as 8 meters (26 feet) across dot the landscape. The large, rectangular boulder at the upper right is 45 meters (148 feet) across.