The Curiosity rover has taken pictures that reveal to us for the first time and with superb clarity the sunset from Mars.
Many of us on Earth love to watch the sun’s last waning rays on the horizon, when our star gently drops its beautiful orange colors before eclipsing. Well, today, thanks to the Curiosity rover, it is possible for us to relive the experience, but from another planet.
The study of the clouds of Mars
Astronomers are used to providing us with quite incredible images. In recent months, we have been able to discover a twin of our Milky Way and quite fascinating shots of the Pillars of Creation, among others. But you don’t necessarily have to go that far out in the universe to pull out amazing footage.
This is shown by the Curiosity rover, sent to Mars by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. This rover, which is currently being used to conduct a study of the Mars sky that began last January, sent us some fascinating images, including the one at the top of this article.
This is a shot of the sky of the red planet at dusk. The sun’s rays here pass through clouds located some 60 kilometers above the ground and made up, according to the space agency’s assumptions, of frozen carbon dioxide.
Other curiosities in stock
And if the illustration of a horizon that humanity dreams of seeing with its own eyes is already an unspeakable pleasure, the observation of these clouds also has a scientific interest. By observing Martian clouds, NASA hopes to learn more about the planet’s atmospheric conditions, temperatures and winds.
In addition, other exceptional images have been produced by Curiosity. One of them, taken on January 27 and reproduced just below, shows us an iridescent cloud formation that looks like a feather. A joy for the eyes, but also a source of information for scientists who have the opportunity to guess the evolution of the cloud thanks to the color transitions.
Sources: NASA, Engadget
1