NASA Orbiter Spots Curiosity Rover Making Tracks to Next Science Stop
a year ago
- #Curiosity
- #NASA
- #Mars
- NASA's Curiosity Mars rover was captured in an orbital image mid-drive for the first time on Feb. 28, 2024 (Sol 4,466).
- The image was taken by the HiRISE camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, showing Curiosity as a dark speck with long tracks spanning about 1,050 feet (320 meters).
- Curiosity was traveling from Gediz Vallis channel to a new science stop, potentially featuring ancient boxwork formations formed by groundwater.
- The rover's speed and navigation depend on terrain challenges and software, with engineers and scientists planning daily routes.
- HiRISE captures images in black and white for spatial resolution, with a color strip; this time, Curiosity appeared in the black-and-white section.
- Curiosity has since ascended a steep slope and is expected to reach its new science location within a month.
- The Curiosity mission is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), with HiRISE operated by the University of Arizona.