The camera was built by Malin Space Science Systems (MSSS) for NASA and the cost of the whole MOC scientific investigation project was about US$44 million, higher than anticipated in the budget.
[1] Mars Orbiter Camera was operated by its manufacturer, Malin Space Science Systems, from its facilities in San Diego, California.
[2] The scientific instrument consisted of three elements: a black-and-white narrow-angle camera with a spatial resolution of 1.4 metres per pixel (from an altitude of 378 km), and two pushbroom wide-angle cameras[3] (one red, the other blue) with resolution capabilities spanning 230 m per pixel to 7.5 km/pixel.
All cameras were based on CCD technology and were supported by state-of-the-art 1980s electronics, including a 32-bit radiation-hardened 10 MHz processor (capable of 1 million instructions per second) and 12 MB of DRAM memory buffer.
The camera also enabled NASA scientists to choose suitable landing sites for other exploration missions.