Visual Monitoring Camera: Difference between revisions

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[[File:Mars-Haze-VMC.jpeg|thumbnail|Valles Marineris on Mars in haze]]

'''Visual Monitoring Camera'''<ref>http://blogs.esa.int/vmc/faq/</ref> (or Video Monitoring Camera<ref>http://www.lpi.usra.edu/vexag/mission_definition.pdf , p.3</ref>), also known as "Mars Webcam", is a small camera (65x60x108 mm) mounted on [[Mars Express]] spacecraft, with the unique purpose of monitoring [[Beagle 2]] deployment, happened on December 19th, 2003 at 8:31 UTC (9:31 CET).

[[File:Beagle-2-separation.png|thumbnail|Beagle 2 separation]]

After performing this task, VMC remained unused, having no scientific purposes.

[[File:Elysium Planitia labelled view.jpg|thumb|Global view of planet Mars, with [[Elysium Planitia]], where [[InSight]] landed in 2018, and Gale crater, where Curiosity landed in 2012 noted along with the North polar cap]]

Sometimes [[ESA]] started public campaigns inviting people to propose subjects to be shot by the camera, the last one planned for 25-27 may 2015<ref> VMC Imaging campaign 2015 - http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Operations/Have_you_ever_used_a_camera_on_board_an_interplanetary_spacecraft</ref>.

The '''Visual Monitoring Camera''' ('''VMC'''),<ref name="faq">{{cite web |url=http://blogs.esa.int/vmc/faq/ |title=Mars Webcam: FAQ |website=blogs.esa.int |publisher=[[European Space Agency]]}}</ref> also known as the '''Video Monitoring Camera'''<ref name="bulletin109">{{cite journal |url=http://www.esa.int/esapub/bulletin/bullet109/chapter9_bul109.pdf |title=Studies on the Re-use of the Mars Express Platform |journal=ESA Bulletin |first1=A. |last1=Gimenez |first2=J-P. |last2=Lebreton |first3=H. |last3=Svedhem |first4=J. |last4=Tauber |issue=109 |date=February 2002|volume=109 |page=78 |bibcode=2002ESABu.109...78G }}</ref> and '''Mars Webcam''', is a small camera mounted on ''[[Mars Express]]'' spacecraft. It is operated by the Mars Express Flight Control Team at [[ESOC]] in [[Darmstadt]], Germany. Originally, VMC was a technical camera to monitor the separation of the Beagle 2 lander, but after a few years, it was repurposed into Mars Webcam, streaming its data to the web and even being used for science.

Starting in 2007, the VMC was used for the Mars Webcam project, where it takes global views of Mars at a high cadence and they are posted online.<ref name="ESA">{{cite web |title=Mars Webcam: About |url=http://blogs.esa.int/vmc/about-the-mars-webcam/ |website=blogs.esa.int |publisher=[[European Space Agency]]}}</ref> The VMC is a camera-on-chip design, using the IRIS-1 system.<ref name="ESA" /> Originally used as engineering monitoring camera for the ''[[Beagle 2]]'' lander, it has a wide 40° [[field of view]] and limited imaging controls and it has no focus mechanism.<ref name="ESA" /> In 2016, it was used for professional science in addition to its roles as a technical monitoring camera and public outreach.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mars Webcam goes pro |url=http://esa.int/Our_Activities/Operations/Mars_Webcam_goes_pro |website=esa.int |publisher=[[European Space Agency]] |date=25 May 2016}}</ref>

== Technical specifications<ref>VMC technical specifications - http://blogs.esa.int/vmc/faq/</ref> ==

* [[CMOS]] based (IMEC IRIS-1)

* [[B/W]] + [[RGB]] filters

* Image size: 640x480 pixels

* Pixel depth: 8 bits

* [[Field of View]]: 40 x 31 degrees

* Distance from [[Mars]] surface: 300-10.000 km<ref>Mars Express orbit video - https://www.flickr.com/photos/esa_marswebcam/16707518966/</ref>

* Calculated<ref>tan(31°/2) * 10000km / 240pixel</ref> resolution at 10.000 km: 11.5 km/pixel

* Calculated<ref>tan(31°/2) * 300km / 240pixel</ref> resolution at 300 km: 0,347 km/pixel

* Mass: 430 g

* Size: 65 x 60 x 108 mm

== History ==

[[File:Mars-Haze-VMC.jpeg|thumbnail|Valles Marineris on Mars in haze]]

The camera was included on the ''Mars Express'' mission with the singular goal of monitoring the deployment of the ''[[Beagle 2]]'' lander, which occurred on 19 December 2003 at 08:31&nbsp;[[UTC]]. After performing this task, the VMC remained unused, having no intended scientific purpose. In 2007, it was checked out and turned on for educational and science outreach. The Mars Webcam project was born and proved popular with the public, offering wide-angle shots of Mars on a regular basis.<ref name="vmc57864">{{cite web |url=http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Operations/Mars_Webcam_goes_pro |title=Mars Webcam goes pro |publisher=European Space Agency |date=25 May 2016 |accessdate=10 November 2016}}</ref>

[[File:Beagle-2-separation.png|thumbnail|Beagle 2 separation]]

The VMC was adopted as a science instrument in early 2016, in a collaboration between ESA and the [[University of the Basque Country]]{{'s}} Planetary Sciences Group. This collaboration will conduct a two-year study of the images returned by VMC, which provide a global view of the planet and allow for the study of planetary phenomena, including changes in the ice caps, dust storms and cloud activity.<ref name="vmc57864" />

The European Space Agency occasionally establishes campaigns inviting people to propose targets to be imaged by the cameras, such as the event on 25–27 May 2015.<ref name="esa20150306">{{cite web |url=http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Operations/Have_you_ever_used_a_camera_on_board_an_interplanetary_craft |title=Have you ever used a camera on board an interplanetary craft? |publisher=European Space Agency |date=6 March 2015 |accessdate=10 November 2016}}</ref>

{{As of|2017|10}}, more than 21,000 images had been returned.<ref name="esa20171017">{{cite web |url=https://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Mars_Express/Webcam_on_Mars_Express_surveys_high-altitude_clouds |title=Webcam on Mars Express surveys high-altitude clouds |publisher=European Space Agency |first1=Agustin |last1=Sánchez-Lavega |first2=Dmitri |last2=Titov |first3=Markus |last3=Bauer |date=17 October 2017 |accessdate=28 July 2018}}</ref> New images are published to the camera's Flickr account in a fully automated process as they are received from the spacecraft,<ref name="planetary20121219">{{cite web |url=http://www.planetary.org/blogs/emily-lakdawalla/2012/12190600-mars-express-vmc.html |title=Mars Express VMC resumes raw data posting |publisher=[[The Planetary Society]] |first=Emily |last=Lakdawalla |date=19 December 2012 |accessdate=10 November 2016}}</ref> sometimes in as little as 75 minutes from when the photograph was taken at Mars.<ref name="esa20171017" /> All images produced by the VMC are released under a [[Creative Commons]] Attribution/ShareAlike license (CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO).<ref name="flickr">{{cite web |url=https://www.flickr.com/people/esa_marswebcam/ |title=VMC The Mars Webcam |work=Flickr.com |accessdate=10 November 2016}}</ref>

On June 3, 2023, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of ''Mars Express'', a [[livestream]] of images from the camera was streamed online, which was the first livestream direct from Mars.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tune in for first Mars livestream |url=https://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Operations/Tune_in_for_first_Mars_livestream |access-date=2023-06-02 |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Technical specifications ==

Specifications of the VMC are:<ref name="faq" />

* [[CMOS]] based (IMEC IRIS-1)

* [[Black and white|B/W]] + [[RGB]] filters

* Image size: 640x480640×480 pixels

* Pixel depth: 8 bits

* [[Field of Viewview]]: 40 x 3140×31 degrees

* Approximate distance from Mars surface: {{convert|300|-|10000|km|mi|abbr=on}}<ref name="sfnow20031225">{{cite news |url=https://www.spaceflightnow.com/mars/marsexpress/031225update.html |title=Mars Express a success, but no one hears Beagle's bark |work=Spaceflight Now |first=Stephen |last=Clark |date=25 December 2003 |accessdate=10 November 2016}}</ref>

* Calculated<ref group="n">tan(31°/2) * 300km300&nbsp;km / 240pixel240&nbsp;px</ref> resolution at 300 &nbsp;km: {{convert|0,.347 |km|mi|abbr=on|disp=x|/pixel (|/px)}}

* Calculated<ref group="n">tan(31°/2) * 10000km10000&nbsp;km / 240pixel240&nbsp;px</ref> resolution at 10.,000 &nbsp;km: {{convert|11.5 |km|mi|abbr=on|disp=x|/pixel (|/px)}}

* Mass: {{convert|430|g|lb|abbr=on}}

* Size: {{convert|65|xx|60|xx|108|mm|abbr=on}}

== Observation targets ==

VMC is not operated by scientists as other onboard instruments; it's instead operated by the '''Mars Express Flight Control Team''', based at [[ESOC]], Darmstadt, Germany.

Noted observations:<ref>{{cite journal |title=Spacecraft exploration of Phobos and Deimos |journal=Planetary and Space Science |first1=Thomas C. |last1=Duxbury |first2=Alexander V. |last2=Zakharov |first3=Harald |last3=Hoffmann |first4=Edward A. |last4=Guinness |display-authors=1 |volume=102 |pages=9–17 |date=November 2014 |doi=10.1016/j.pss.2013.12.008 |bibcode=2014P&SS..102....9D|doi-access=free }}</ref>

MEFCT is currently uploading VMC images to its Flickr account in a fully automated process which makes images available to the public as soon as they are downloaded from the spacecraft<ref>http://www.planetary.org/blogs/emily-lakdawalla/2012/12190600-mars-express-vmc.html</ref>, and all pictures taken till now are available for free download, including images of [[Beagle 2]] separation occurred in 2003<ref>https://www.flickr.com/photos/esa_marswebcam/sets/72157632218100711/ - 8 images of Beagle 2 separation</ref>.

*Beagle 2

*Mars

**2018 Martian dust storm<ref>{{cite tweet |number=1010757825830801408 |title=New VMC Images direct from Mars! |user=esamarswebcam |date=24 June 2018}}</ref>

== See also ==

*[[JunoCam]] (another Education/Public outreach space camera on a space probe)

== External resourcesNotes ==

{{reflist|group=n}}

* VMC blog: http://blogs.esa.int/vmc/

* VMC [[FAQ]]: http://blogs.esa.int/vmc/faq/

* [[Flickr]] archive: https://www.flickr.com/photos/esa_marswebcam/with/16707518966/

== References ==

== Images copyright<ref>https://www.flickr.com/people/esa_marswebcam/ - Copyright info</ref> ==

{{reflist|2}}

All VMC images, past and present, are released by ESA under a [[CC license]], as follows:

== External referenceslinks ==

''This work is licenced under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO) licence. The user is allowed to reproduce, distribute, adapt, translate and publicly perform this publication, without explicit permission, provided that the content is accompanied by an acknowledgement that the source is credited as 'ESA - European Space Agency’, a direct link to the licence text is provided (see example below) and that it is clearly indicated if changes were made to the original content. Adaptation/translation/derivatives must be distributed under the same licence terms as this publication. To view a copy of this license, please visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/igo

* [[Flickr]] archive: https://www.flickr.com/photos/esa_marswebcam/with/16707518966/ Mars Webcam Photostream] at [[Flickr|Flickr.com]]

* [http://blogs.esa.int/vmc/ Mars Webcam Blog] by the European Space Agency

*[https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S009457651100124X An ordinary camera in an extraordinary ___location: Outreach with the Mars Webcam]

{{Marsexpress}}

Credit: ESA - European Space Agency, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO''

{{Mars}}

[[Category:Mars Express]]

== External references ==

[[Category:Mars imagers]]

<references>