Still Life with Rover
This full-resolution self-portrait shows the deck of NASA's Curiosity rover from the rover's Navigation camera. The back of the rover can be seen at the top left of the image, and two of the rover's right side wheels can be seen on the left. The undulating rim of Gale Crater forms the lighter color strip in the background. Bits of gravel, about 0.4 inches (1 centimeter) in size, are visible on the deck of the rover.
This mosaic is made of 20 images, each of 1,024 by 1,024 pixels, taken late at night on Aug. 7 PDT (early morning Aug. 8 EDT). It uses an average of the Navcam positions to synthesize the point of view of a single camera, with a field of view of 120 degrees. Seams between the images have been minimized as much as possible. The wide field of view introduces some distortion at the edges of the mosaic.
The "augmented reality" or AR tag seen on the rover deck, in the middle of the image, can be used in the future with smart phones to obtain more information about the mission.
Excitement builds at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory when news of a successful parachute deployment from the Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft reaches the science team.
Science Team Celebrates Parachute Deployment
NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has caught the first image of asteroids taken from the surface of Mars. The image includes two asteroids, Ceres and Vesta. This version includes Mars' moon Deimos in a c...
First Asteroid Image from the Surface of Mars (Annotated)
Engineers who designed the entry, descent and landing system for NASA's Mars rover Curiosity candidly talk about the new landing system, and describe the challenges of Curiosity's final moments bef...
Challenges of Getting to Mars: Curiosity's Seven Minutes of Terror
NASA's Curiosity Mars rover took this selfie at a location nicknamed "Mary Anning" after a 19th century English paleontologist. Curiosity snagged three samples of drilled rock at this site on its w...
Curiosity's Selfie at the 'Mary Anning' Location on Mars
The landing site for NASA's Mars rover Curiosity was chosen for giving the mission access to examine the lower layers of a mountain inside Gale Crater.
'Mount Sharp' on Mars Compared to Three Big Mountains on Earth
NASA rover makes first big maneuver en route to August rendezvous with Mars.
Curiosity Tweaks Course to Mars
Two of the raised treads, called grousers, on the left middle wheel of NASA's Curiosity Mars rover broke during the first quarter of 2017, including the one seen partially detached at the top of th...
Break in Raised Tread on Curiosity Wheel
NASA's Mars rover Curiosity heads on the long journey to the mission's main destination, Mount Sharp.
Trek to Mount Sharp Begins
Some of the women working on NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Project, which built and operates the Curiosity Mars rover, gathered for this photo in the Mars Yard used for rover testing at NASA's Jet...
Women of Mars, in Mars Yard at JPL
This stereo view from the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a 360-degree panorama around the location where the rover spent its 1,000th Martian day, or sol, on Mars. T...
Panorama from Curiosity's Sol 1000 Location (Stereo)
At the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the "back shell powered descent vehicle" configuration, containing NASA's Mars Science Laboratory rover, Curio...
Connecting Curiosity's Heat Shield and Back Shell
This mosaic of images from the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity shows the terrain to the west from the rover's position on the 528th Martian day, or sol, of the mission (Ja...
Curiosity's View Past Dune at 'Dingo Gap'
The Mars Science Laboratory flight system will consist of four major elements in three distinct phases (from left): the cruise stage, the aeroshell (heatshield and backshell), the descent stage, an...
Cruise stage with flight system
This color full-resolution image showing the heat shield of NASA's Curiosity rover was obtained during descent to the surface of Mars on Aug. 5 PDT (Aug. 6 EDT).
Curiosity's Heat Shield in Detail
This artist's impression Mars' Gale Crater depicts a cross section through the mountain in the middle of the crater, from a viewpoint looking toward the southeast.
Cross Section of Gale Crater, Mars
Southern Meridiani
The team operating NASA's Curiosity Mars rover uses the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) camera on the rover's arm to check the condition of the wheels at routine intervals.
Routine Inspection of Rover Wheel Wear and Tear
The sparks that appear on the baseball-sized rock result from the laser of the ChemCam instrument on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover hitting the rock. (No audio)
Flash from Curiosity Rover's Laser Hitting a Martian Rock
This map shows the route driven by NASA's Curiosity Mars rover from the location where it landed in August 2012 to its location in December 2015, at examples of the Bagnold Dunes.
Curiosity Rover's Traverse, First 1,185 Sols on Mars
Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin, left, and Erisa Hines of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, speak to members of the news media during a preview of the new "Destination: Mars...
"Destination: Mars" experience at the Kennedy Space Center
This image from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a portion of the pale rock outcrop that includes the "Bonanza King" target chosen for evaluation as the mission's four...
Drilling Candidate Site 'Bonanza King' on Mars
The red "X" marks the spot where NASA's Curiosity rover landed on Mars.
Zeroing in on Rover's Landing Site
Engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., on the day of NASA's Curiosity rover landing on the Red Planet. The rover touched down on Mars the evening of Aug. 5 PDT (morning ...
Curiosity's EDL Team
Curiosity used its Mast Camera, or Mastcam, to capture this image of its 36th successful drill hole on Mount Sharp, at a rock called "Canaima." The rovers Mars Hand Lens Imager took the inset image...
Curiosity's 36th Drill Hole at 'Canaima'
Scientists get closer to selecting a landing site for the Curiosity rover.
Challenges of Getting to Mars: Selecting a Landing Site