‘Next Best Thing to Being There’: NASA Releases Stunning 360-Degree Image of Mars
- Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:12am by
Madeleine Morgenstern
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This full-circle scene combines 817 images taken by the panoramic camera (Pancam) on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity. It shows the terrain that surrounded the rover while it was stationary for four months of work during its most recent Martian winter. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell/Arizona State Univ.
It may be a long time before humans are able to get to Mars, but according to NASA, we have the “next best thing.”
The agency last week unveiled a breathtaking image of the Red Planet, stitched together from 817 component images taken by NASA’s Opportunity rover over a five-month period.
Wired Science has more:
The solar-powered, golf-cart-sized rover, called Opportunity, wrapped up exploration of the half-mile-wide Victoria Crater in August 2008. It then rolled for the next three years to reach the 14-mile-wide Endeavour Crater.
But the plucky robot must hunker down during Martian winters that last six Earth months, as Opportunity needs to have enough power to warm its fragile electronics. So from Dec. 21, 2011 through May 8, 2012, NASA instructed the robot to stay put and take 817 images.
The space agency stitched those photos together to craft a near-wraparound image of Opportunity’s overwintering spot, a rocky outcrop near the 4-billion-year-old Endeavour Crater that scientists named “Greeley Haven.”
Close-up of the left-hand side of the image via the Daily Mail.
NASA provides this additional image information:
North is at the center of the image. South is at both ends. On the far left at the horizon is “Rich Morris Hill.”
[...]
Bright wind-blown deposits on the left are banked up against the Greeley Haven outcrop. Opportunity’s tracks can be seen extending from the south, with a turn-in-place and other maneuvers evident from activities to position the rover at Greeley Haven. The tracks in some locations have exposed darker underlying soils by disturbing a thin, bright dust cover.
Other bright, dusty deposits can be seen to the north, northeast, and east of Greeley Haven. The deposit at the center of the image, due north from the rover’s winter location, is a dusty patch called “North Pole.” Opportunity drove to it and investigated it in May 2012 as an example of wind-blown Martian dust.
The interior of Endeavour Crater can been seen just below the horizon in the right half of the scene, to the northeast and east of Cape York. The crater spans 14 miles (22 kilometers) in diameter.
According to NASA, the image is presented in “false color to emphasize differences between materials in the scene.”
You can download larger versions of the image here.
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Comments (84)
Too_Far_Gone
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 2:54pmLooks like obongo was in charge for a few years…
Report Post »lukerw
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 4:35pmMars… the God of War… is awake.
Report Post »shogun459
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 2:50pmRemember who ended America’s space program?
Obama
Who gave the world the gift of our space station?
Clinton
Who gave China missil tech for space that is now guiding nuke rockets?
Clinton
Who ran up the tab and then gave China a Rite of imminent domain for all holding US foriegn and Domestic.
Obama
America is being given away and sold out.
Report Post »CatB
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 3:03pmYes .. everytime the Dems have control .. we lose more and more. Including but not limited to .. freedom.
Look what HILLARY and Obama are doing now to the safety and stability of the world!
Report Post »hazmat_factor
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 3:16pmNow add to that, Afganistan in favored status, does that mean they won’t be screened as carefully @ the airport???
Report Post »demokratikhundscheisse
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 4:02pmYeah, but we got NASA Mooslum outreach in return! LOL….
Report Post »koobee
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 7:28pmYou didn’t mention the Alaskan Islands to Russia;.
Report Post »garylee123
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 2:15pmLooks like the US after four more years of Oblammo.
Report Post »silentwatcher
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 2:35pmNow they‘ve ’occupied’ Mars….
Report Post »RabidPatriot
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 2:45pmLooks like Afghanistan to me.
Report Post »Randyrocker
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 2:10pmWow NASA the organization shut down by Obama delights us all, by showing us first hand, just where we can ship Barack Obama and his band of lying thugs in the White House this November.
Report Post »hazmat_factor
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 3:38pmI second the motion, … all those in favor of the proposition…..the ayes have it!!!
Report Post »Jezreel
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:56pmHope you are not one of these idiots who is going to write his name in and give the vote to Obama. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like Romney either but those who are going to throw a tantrum and write in a name or not vote at all are stupid idiots.
Report Post »Rayblue
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:43pmOne drone with an hours worth of power could do a lot more
Report Post »than a radio shack remote controlled go-cart.
shogun459
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 2:51pmUh no air to fly in planes don’t work on mars sorry.
Report Post »DimmuBorgir
Posted on July 9, 2012 at 11:44amthere is air on mars, it’s not our air, but it’s air.
Report Post »BeingThere
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:15pmWith the infinite number of planets available why can’t I have my own? It’s extremely embarrassing to be on this one and I want off!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Report Post »myway
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:28pmNow that is something we can all believe in! FUNNY!
Report Post »capitalismrocks
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:14pmI’m waiting for the EPA to shutdown NASA planetary exploration missions because we left so much unregulated pollution and garbage on the surface of other planets ;-)
Report Post »tommyg524
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 9:10pmStill in ur house? Still got a job? Got an education loan to pay off to some private? Got a savings account? 402k? yes, yes, no, yes,yes? then youre in ok shape, for now. But for many americans, yeah the wh-te n bl-ck peeps who run this cuntry (not the illegals) are out on the street thanks to central banks and all things wall street. My question is, where do these central banks fit in in the scheme of “capitalismrocks”? Yeah, you know, the world banking system which profits on BOTH sides of ALL wars todate. I’d like to know. ust an honest question. You don’t have to come back with some smart assed answer to belittle me, just answer the question.
Report Post »Blacktooth
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:13pmWe trashed the earth. We trashed the Moon. We trashed Mars. We trashed the Oceans. We trashed Space with our orbiting satellites. We trashed ourselves by ignoring God’s pleadings and counsel.
Should we repent and seek God’s face? – Romans 2:4
Report Post »GoodStuff
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:34pmWhy are you talking about God? You seem more concerned about Creation than you do the Creator.
Report Post »Blacktooth
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:56pmThe True God Jehovah has created all things. – Revelation 4:11
Report Post »We should respect His creations.
chips1
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 7:21pmPeople have been trashing the world since the beginning of time. Look at all the old junk they keep digging up in Egypt. Useless abandoned buildings and inclmpleted colliseums.
Report Post »nzkiwi
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:10pmThat is truly amazing. It makes one pleased to have lived in this time.
What saddens me is that I‘m going to die one day and I’m going to miss all the great things that are going to happen afterwards.
Report Post »watashbuddyfriend
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 1:27pm@nzkiwi, make the right choice and you will be able to see lots more following your death!
Report Post »drattastic
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:10pmAre we sure this isn’t a picture of the US taken in the future by a time traveler after 4 more years of oblameo . Probably still Bush’s fault.
Report Post »qpwillie
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:09pm@mygunsweetness
Hey, it’s over. He lost the nomination.
Why did you bring him up here? Is he from Mars? That would explain a lot.
Report Post »acovenantinblood
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:59amIt looks like a place that Kim Jong Il has ran for 5 years!
Report Post »James Daly
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:38amMuslim Community outreach to Mars?
Report Post »Skrewedretiree
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:42pmThat would be a good place to send all of them.
Report Post »deadend
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:43pmThe are use to desert let’s send them all
Report Post »chips1
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 7:11pmThey would walk a mile for a camel.
Report Post »woodyee
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:34amI wonder what our Earth will be like when our future Martian astronauts (should we have the wisdom to retain our way of life and we have any) return?
Report Post »4xeverything
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:46amMaybe they could make a video so they can talk to their future selves.
Report Post »blackyb
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:34amI guess the Martians could say: Well, there goes the neighborhood.
Report Post »Hollywood
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:42amLooks like Detroit,once the bulldozers come in to level the repo’d/deserted housing ??
Report Post »scudster
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:30amObama will need apologize to the universe for the American made tire tracks and the damages and debris left behind at the landing zones.
Report Post »blanco5
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:39amHa!
Report Post »RLTW
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:00pmSo we can send a rover to Mars, but we can’t destroy communism in our time. sad very sad
Report Post »BeeDee
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 7:48pmProbably has his speech-writers and the ‘prompter working on it a we speak, and getting read to address the U.N. as well.
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:29amI sent my tax dollars to NASA and all I get are theses crummy pictures?
What a waste of money.
Report Post »blanco5
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:39amI thought NASA was de-funded after prez islama couldn’t find any muslim input?
Report Post »ModerationIsBest
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:39pmLol, so ignorant.
Report Post »blanco5
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 2:18pmmoderaton—-too close to the truth? You want to know what is REALLY ignorant? …. Someone who defends the WORST prez in history!!!!
Report Post »RepubliCorp
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 2:33pmwith thinking like yours we would still be living in a cave in Europe and texting would be smoke signals…….
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 2:51pmYou Stupid MFers thing NASA has given us anything that would have not been discovered by the FREE MARKETS???
Report Post »therealconservative
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 5:11pm@Bad
You don’t pay your taxes, remember DEADBEAT
Report Post »Chris
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 10:15pmAll of the “spinoffs” from NASA technology occurred in the free market.Either NASA had a requirement for some technology that they contracted with a company to provide, and that company developed and sold products based on that technology, or NASA invented the technology and a company either adopted the technology and sold their own products based on it or developed a competing product that they owned themselves.
If NASA develops and patents a technology, companies that want to use it have to license it, and the government usually does not grant exclusive licenses. If they want to control the technology themselves they have to invent something as good or better that is different enough to allow them to patent it themselves. One of the big reasons why jet engines are as powerful and safe as they are now is because of this technology competition between the engine manufacturers and NASA,
Report Post »4xeverything
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:26amWhen the rovers are finished it would be pretty neat to have NASA put together a virtual tour of the ground covered in the past decade.
Report Post »honkytonkman
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:26amThis looks like an ideal place for all of the America hating politicians and their flocks to take up residence.
Report Post »kickagrandma
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:24amNever thought I’d say this as I am not a space-traveler, but Mars is starting to look real good! Maybe we could send all the leftists idjits up there, as is. They’d never get off their lazy butts long enough to invent or develop anything, just whine alllllll day and night long. Listening to them make coyotes sound pleasant.
Report Post »oneshiner
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:39pmPick the most despised politicians and tell them they’ve won a fabulous trip and see how many take us up on it to keep getting freebees from the dumb American people.
Report Post »That gal from S.F. will be my first choice pick, then the Nv. wanna be Mormon is 2nd.
How about SJL Tx, and MW from Compton (watts), any more? We have room for 20
Cloth Stews
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:24amGlad to see pictures of where I am from
Report Post »kickagrandma
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:39pmLOL~~~ That’s funny!
Report Post »Blacktooth
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:23amI have mixed reactions to this.
Report Post »On one hand the experience of seeing the surface of Mars so clearly is truly spectacular.
On the other hand I ask our Creator God to forgive us for trashing His Creation.
bobefann
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:21amSomehow, Obama will find a way to destroy this planet also
Report Post »thegreatcarnac
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 11:20amThis is how the US will look if obama gets 4 more years.
Report Post »NancyBee
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 12:16pmComment winner!!! Comment winner!!!
Report Post »IMPrepared
Posted on July 8, 2012 at 6:12pmI second that!!!
Report Post »