September 11, 2012 – Analog Devices ( www.analog.com , NASDAQ: ADI), a global leader in high-performance signal processing technology and data converters, announced that its high-performance data converter AD6645 was used in the HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) camera at Ball Aerospace, a company that designs, develops, and manufactures innovative aerospace systems, enabling scientists to capture the highest resolution images of Mars. The HiRISE camera is the largest and highest-resolution camera ever sent beyond Earth's orbit and was launched into space in August 2005 aboard NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) to search for traces of life on Mars.

The Hi-Rise camera is capable of capturing an area of approximately 4 x 7 miles of the Martian surface at a resolution of about 800 megapixels. This provides the highest resolution images showing Mars' geological topography and climatic processes, revealing details ranging from small, table-sized objects to surface features. Thanks to this exceptional performance, the Hi-Rise camera is capable of photographing the Martian surface at a resolution approximately five times that of previously used cameras, providing images of 20,000 x 40,000 pixels. To date, this camera has taken more than 21,000 photos of Mars.

<Mounting the HiRISE camera on NASA's MRO> <Martian sedimentary rocks captured by HiRISE>

In the image processing and memory module of the HiRise camera, 28 of ADI's high-performance 14-bit AD6645 AD converters are used for 14 charge-coupled devices (CCDs). The CCDs capture light reflected from the surface of Mars and convert it into electrical signals. These electrical signals are then rapidly converted into digital data by the AD6645 and transmitted from the spacecraft to Earth via the Deep Space Network (DSN). This radiation-corrected data, processed through the DSN, is processed into a mosaic image composed of 14 CCD image strips and then adjusted to represent the distance and position between the spacecraft and Mars. This image is finally displayed aligned with the coordinates representing the planet.

Doug Bartow, Marketing Manager at Analog Devices, said, “We are proud that ADI’s high-performance data converters, as a core technology for the HiRISE camera, have contributed to expanding our holistic understanding of Mars. Originally, the scientific exploration mission of this orbiter was scheduled to last for about two years.” "However, the fact that the Hi-Rise camera and the Mars Orbiter continue to provide valuable images of Mars even now, long after their original mission duration has passed, clearly demonstrates the reliability of the components used in these systems," he said.

Thomas Ebben, Project Manager for HiRise at Ball Aerospace, said, “Analog Devices’ data converters have delivered performance that exceeded our company’s technical requirements and are contributing to the execution of HiRise’s historic mission by capturing remarkably clear photos of Mars.”

Supporting sampling frequencies of up to 105 MSPS (million samples per second) and providing excellent noise performance, the AD6645 meets Ball Aerospace's demanding performance and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) requirements. In addition, through Ball Aerospace's rigorous temperature and vibration testing, the AD6645 has been proven to be highly suitable for the extreme environmental conditions during spacecraft launches.

Analog Devices' AD6645 remains in high demand to this day and is actively adopted in various types of applications, including satellites. In August 2012, a recent photo of Mars taken by the MRO orbiter can be viewed in detail via the URL below.
http://www.youtube.com/UAHiRISE