Calibration of the Mariner Mars 1969 television cameras

The purpose of an instrument calibration is to determine as accurately as possible the relationship between the input stimulus and the instrument's output signal. Each individual instrument has a unique calibration signature that must be accurately determined, in addition to its behavior characteristics in the environment in which it is predicted to operate. The philosophy adopted for calibration of the Mariner Mars 1969 television subsystem was derived from the basic purpose of exploratory photography, as established by prior lunar and planetary missions, ‘to produce the most accurate and complete reproductions possible of the observed scenes, consistent with specific objectives and limitations of the particular experiment’ [Herriman, 1967].