wonderful universe
Left , this self-portrait of NASA ’ s Curiosity Mars rover shows the vehicle at “ Namib Dune ,” where the rover ’ s activities included scuffing into the dune with a wheel and scooping samples of sand for laboratory analysis . The scene combines 57 images taken on Jan . 19 , 2016 , during the 1,228th Martian day , or sol , of Curiosity ’ s work on Mars . The camera used for this is the Mars Hand Lens Imager ( MAHLI ) at the end of the rover ’ s robotic arm . Below , this composite image looking toward the higher regions of Mount Sharp was taken on September 9 , 2015 , by NASA ’ s Curiosity rover . In the foreground — about 3 kilometers from the rover — is a long ridge teeming with hematite , an iron oxide . Just beyond is an undulating plain rich in clay minerals . And just beyond that are a multitude of rounded buttes , all high in sulfate minerals . The changing mineralogy in these layers of Mount Sharp suggests a changing environment in early Mars , though all involve exposure to water billions of years ago . Further back in the image are striking , light-toned cliffs in rock that may have formed in drier times and now are heavily eroded by winds .
COURTESY OF NASA / JPL-Caltech / MSSS
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