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A Better Look of the Martian Surface

Aug. 8, 2012
NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter obtained this color image with the Mars Descent Imager aboard NASA's Curiosity rover during its descent to the surface. Curiosity landed on Aug. 5 PDT (Aug. 6 EDT).

This set of images compares a black-and-white image from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) aboard NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to a color image obtained by the Mars Descent Imager aboard NASA's Curiosity rover during its descent to the surface. Curiosity landed on Aug. 5 PDT (Aug. 6 EDT).

The MARDI image was the 512th frame taken during the descent. It was acquired from an altitude of about 560 feet (170 meters), and about 44 seconds before touchdown. The area covers is about 705 by 490 feet (215 by 150 meters), and has a pixel scale of about 5 inches (12 centimeters). Small rocks and windblown sediment patterns are seen thoughout the image. The white box is the size of the rover and is placed at the location determined from MARDI data.

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