Odyssey image
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THEMIS instrument
The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) is an instrument on board the Mars Odyssey spacecraft. It combines a 5-wavelength visual imaging system with a 9-wavelength infrared imaging system.
The orbiter launched from Kennedy Space Center on April 7, 2001 and arrived at Mars on October 24, 2001. The orbiter spent the next several months achieving a circular mapping orbit by aerobraking (dipping into the atmosphere to slow and shrink the orbit). Aerobraking concluded in early February 2002, and primary mapping operations began a few weeks later.
Mars Odyssey carries three main science instruments: The Gamma Ray Spectrometer (GRS), the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS), and the Mars Radiation Environment Experiment (MARIE).
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Image Galleries Access to images from THEMIS and other missions, sorted by type. Mars Odyssey SpacecraftOdyssey looking down for water
Contacts List of THEMIS press contacts.
Fact Sheet Detailed information about the Mars Odyssey mission.
THEMIS News Headlines News stories about discoveries made with the THEMIS instrument.
Conferences & Workshops Calendar of upcoming events.
Feature Stories Weekly scientific feature stories.
Major Discoveries Important scientific findings from the THEMIS instrument.