Synthetic topography from the decameter to the centimeter scale on Mars for scientific and rover operations of the ESA-Roscosmos ExoMars mission

Abstract The ESA-Roscosmos ExoMars platform and rover mission will have complex interactions with the martian surface. In order to plan and perform landing, roving and scientific operations, the morphological characteristics of the terrain surrounding the rover need to be characterized from the decameter to the centimeter spatial scale. The smallest possible features currently identifiable are typically >0.75 ​m in size, corresponding to three times the ground sampling resolution of the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). We have developed a synthetic topography with a ground sampling resolution of 0.01 ​m by integrating 1) a modeled topography of small-scale topographic features (e.g., rocks) into 2) a 0.25 ​m resolution digital elevation model (DTM) built by applying stereo and shape-from-shading techniques to HiRISE data. The modeled topography of small-scale topographic features is based on the extrapolation of the abundance and spatial distribution pattern of geological features measurable in HiRISE data. We determined that the cumulative fractional area covered by relief, i.e., float blocks and ridged outcrops, over the entire Oxia Planum landing site spans the range 0–30% with a mean abundance of relief of 7 ​± ​5%. The synthetic topography can be used for highly realistic environment simulations and rover drive planning. Artificial rover camera images produced with the synthetic topography incorporate orbital-based geomorphological units and can be used for improved planning and analyses of actual rover images.