rover Endurance (Perseverance) has been on Mars since 2021, and in addition to collecting rock samples, it has been looking for signs of water on the Red Planet. In addition to endurance, the Curiosity rover has also observed the clouds of Mars and has now recorded a rare sight that shows us the twilight sun rays (or sun rays) on the surface of Mars for the first time.
The clouds seen in the image below are located at a higher altitude than most Martian clouds, which are about 60 km from the Earth’s surface, and are made of water ice. Given that the clouds in the image formed above a region of very cold air, NASA thinks they are made of frozen carbon dioxide (or dry ice).
Viewing Martian clouds with Curiosity’s Mastcam
Observing Martian clouds can help scientists learn more about the Red Planet’s climate, temperature and cold winds.
Curiosity will often use its color Mast Camera (or Mastcam) for this investigation, which began in January and will end in early March. These instruments will help the rover take pictures that show scientists how cloud particles glow over different periods of time.
For the panoramic image above, NASA stitched together 28 images taken by Mastcam. In 2021, the Curiosity rover often relied on its black-and-white cameras to accurately show the structure of clouds.
In addition to the first image of Mars’ solar rays, NASA’s research instrument has also shared other interesting images of the Red Planet’s clouds. One image shared on January 27 (pictured above) shows a rainbow cloud shaped like a feather.
