Which basin was selected as the landing site for Spirit based on orbital data suggesting a past lake?
Answer
Gusev Crater
The landing site selection for the Spirit rover was a highly strategic process aimed at finding evidence of past liquid water. Gusev Crater was chosen specifically because preliminary orbital data indicated that this large basin might have once contained a substantial lake. The scientific objective relied on Spirit landing in an area where past aqueous activity would have left chemical fingerprints in the rocks and soil. Successfully touching down inside Gusev Crater allowed the rover to immediately begin testing this hypothesis by looking for water-formed minerals.
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