Monthly Archives: March 2014

HiRISE: Depression on the ESE rim of Hale Crater

Beautiful Mars series: A depression on the east southeast rim of Hale Crater. More Beautiful Mars images.

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Curiosity: Sol 586, March 31, 2014

After backing Curiosity away from the north end of the Kimberley outcrop, mission planners prepare to drive the rover to Kimberley’s east side. This left-side Navcam shot looks southwest over the outcrop’s layered rocks to the far end of Mount … Continue reading

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Opportunity: Sol 3618, March 29, 2014

After a 20-meter (66-foot) drive to the southwest on Murray Ridge, Opportunity’s left-side Navcam took an unfiltered shot looking back along the rover’s track. The local time was nearly 4 pm. Note the low outcrop of rock on the ridge … Continue reading

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Curiosity update: “Layers and landslides”

Sol 584 (March 28, 2014) update on Curiosity from U.S. Geological Survey scientist Ken Herkenhoff: “MSL planning is still restricted, but because the rover has not moved we were able to plan more targeted contact science on Sol 584. After.…” … Continue reading

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THEMIS: Dust devil tracks

THEMIS Image of the Day, March 31, 2014. A multitude of dust devil tracks mark the suface in this region of Utopia Planitia. More THEMIS Images of the Day by geological topic.

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HiRISE: Mesa in Ius Chasma

Beautiful Mars series: A mesa in Ius Chasma. More Beautiful Mars images.

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CRISM: Phyllosilicates in Nili Fossae

This image shows a site near Nili Fossae, a group of long, narrow tectonic depressions called graben. Mars’ crust is mostly made up of igneous rock and mafic materials, shown here with red denoting olivine. There are also aqueously-altered minerals … Continue reading

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HiRISE: Melt

Beautiful Mars series: Melt. More Beautiful Mars images.

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Curiosity update: “In a good position”

Sol 583, (March 27, 2014) update on Curiosity from U.S. Geological Survey scientist Ken Herkenhoff: “The bump toward the outcrop put us in a good position for contact science, so it was a busy day for me as MAHLI/MARDI uplink … Continue reading

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Cleaner rover sees its shadow in Martian spring

Late afternoon lighting produced a dramatic shadow of NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity photographed by the rover’s rear hazard-avoidance camera on March 20, 2014. The shadow falls across a slope called the McClure-Beverlin Escarpment on the western rim of Endeavour … Continue reading

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