                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2021 September 14

                      Mars Panorama 360 from Curiosity
   Image Credit: NASA, JPL-Caltech, MSSS; Processing & License: Elisabetta
                 Bonora & Marco Faccin (aliveuniverse.today)

   Explanation: Which way up Mount Sharp? In early September, the robotic
   rover Curiosity continued its ascent up the central peak of Gale
   Crater, searching for more clues about ancient water and further
   evidence that Mars could once have been capable of supporting life. On
   this recent Martian morning, before exploratory drilling, the rolling
   rover took this 360-degree panorama, in part to help Curiosity's human
   team back on Earth access the landscape and chart possible future
   routes. In the horizontally-compressed featured image, an amazing vista
   across Mars was captured, complete with layered hills, red rocky
   ground, gray drifting sand, and a dusty atmosphere. The hill just left
   of center has been dubbed Maria Gordon Notch in honor of a famous
   Scottish geologist. The current plan is to direct Curiosity to
   approach, study, and pass just to the right of Gordon Notch on its
   exploratory trek.

                      Tomorrow's picture: cyclone earth
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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                             & Michigan Tech. U.


