 |
| Add caption |
The Curiosity rover used a camera located on its arm to obtain this self portrait, taken before engineers removed its dust cover.
We have already become familiar with the sight of Curiosity on the Martian surface, but Nasa today revealed one of the most human-like images of the rover, showing its 'face' on the surface of the red planet.
The image was taken moments before engineers sent commands to remove the dust covers from one of Curiosity's most important cameras for the first time.
It was then calibrated using a 'lucky penny' hidden on the rover's arm, before taking a series of astonishing shots of its wheels on the red planet's surface.
The reclosable dust cover on Curiosity's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) was opened for the first time during the 33rd Martian day, or sol, of the rover's mission on Mars.
Wheels down: Nasa used the newly uncovered Mahli camera to take a series of images of the rover's wheel on the red planet's surface
The new images also give tantalising views of the nearby mountains that Curiosity will eventually climb in its quest for for ingredients of life on the red planet
The images also reveal Curiosity's large wheels and distinctive tyre tracks, which leave morse code messages on the surface as it travels.
0 Comments