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Spotlight On Mars

Shutterbugs Shoot 'Scarecrow'

27-June-2007

In this image, about a dozen people watch the large Scarecrow rover drive over a grayish orange boulder in an outdoor sandbox. Scarecrow is about the size of a small compact car. Its 'legs,' (mobility system) are a vibrant blue color and its large wheels are silver and covered in chevron-like cleats. Members of the media hold cameras.

On June 19, 2007, media visited JPL's newly expanded outdoor Mars Yard where rovers train for future planetary missions. Visitors were treated to a test drive of the "Scarecrow" rover. Scarecrow might still be missing its computer "brains," but it certainly showed off its monster appetite for large boulders, making easy work of traversing them. In early 2008, assembly of this hefty, hyper-capable rover will begin.