Mars rover takes detailed, color images of mountain
Source: Agencies |
August 29, 2012, Wednesday
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Print Edition
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NASA has showed off the first high-resolution, color images taken by the Mars rover Curiosity, detailing a mound of layered rock where scientists plan to focus their search for the chemical ingredients of life on the Red Planet.
The stunning images reveal distinct tiers near the base of the 5-kilometer-tall mountain that rises from the floor of the vast, ancient impact basin known as Gale Crater, where Curiosity landed on August 6 for its two-year mission.
Scientists estimate it will be a year before the nuclear-powered rover physically reaches the layers of interest at the foot of the mountain.
From earlier orbital imagery, the layers appear to contain clays and other hydrated minerals that form in the presence of water.
While previous missions have uncovered strong evidence for vast amounts of water flowing over Mars surface in the past, Curiosity hunts for organic materials and other chemistry considered necessary for microbial life to evolve.
The latest images from Curiosity, taken at a distance from its primary target of exploration, already have given scientists a new view of the formation's structure.
The layers above where scientists expect to find hydrated minerals show sharp tilts, offering a strong hint of dramatic changes in Gale Crater, located in the planet's southern hemisphere near its equator.
Mount Sharp, the name given to the towering formation at the center of the crater, is believed to be the remains of sediment that once completely filled the 154-km-wide basin. The higher layers are steeply slanted relative to the layers of underlying rock, the reverse of similar features found in Earth's Grand Canyon.
The stunning images reveal distinct tiers near the base of the 5-kilometer-tall mountain that rises from the floor of the vast, ancient impact basin known as Gale Crater, where Curiosity landed on August 6 for its two-year mission.
Scientists estimate it will be a year before the nuclear-powered rover physically reaches the layers of interest at the foot of the mountain.
From earlier orbital imagery, the layers appear to contain clays and other hydrated minerals that form in the presence of water.
While previous missions have uncovered strong evidence for vast amounts of water flowing over Mars surface in the past, Curiosity hunts for organic materials and other chemistry considered necessary for microbial life to evolve.
The latest images from Curiosity, taken at a distance from its primary target of exploration, already have given scientists a new view of the formation's structure.
The layers above where scientists expect to find hydrated minerals show sharp tilts, offering a strong hint of dramatic changes in Gale Crater, located in the planet's southern hemisphere near its equator.
Mount Sharp, the name given to the towering formation at the center of the crater, is believed to be the remains of sediment that once completely filled the 154-km-wide basin. The higher layers are steeply slanted relative to the layers of underlying rock, the reverse of similar features found in Earth's Grand Canyon.
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