JPL
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
JPL Logo
JPL Logo
Image

Mount Sharp Comes In Sharply

Oct. 2, 2015
Context Image
Larger image for PIA19912
This composite image looking toward the higher regions of Mount Sharp was taken in mid-September, 2015, by NASA's Curiosity rover.
Context Image
Larger image for PIA19912

This composite image looking toward the higher regions of Mount Sharp was taken on September 9, 2015, by NASA's Curiosity rover. In the foreground -- about 2 miles (3 kilometers) from the rover -- is a long ridge teeming with hematite, an iron oxide. Just beyond is an undulating plain rich in clay minerals. And just beyond that are a multitude of rounded buttes, all high in sulfate minerals. The changing mineralogy in these layers of Mount Sharp suggests a changing environment in early Mars, though all involve exposure to water billions of years ago. The Curiosity team hopes to be able to explore these diverse areas in the months and years ahead. Further back in the image are striking, light-toned cliffs in rock that may have formed in drier times and now is heavily eroded by winds.

The colors are adjusted so that rocks look approximately as they would if they were on Earth, to help geologists interpret the rocks. This "white balancing" to adjust for the lighting on Mars overly compensates for the absence of blue on Mars, making the sky appear light blue and sometimes giving dark, black rocks a blue cast.

Malin Space Science Systems, San Diego, built and operates Curiosity's Mastcam. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, built the rover and manages the project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington.

More information about Curiosity is online at http://www.nasa.gov/msl and http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/.

Download JPG
Download TIFF
Mission
Target
  • Mars
Spacecraft
  • Curiosity
Instrument
  • Mastcam
Credit
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Keep Exploring

Curiosity Views First Martian Sun Rays

Curiosity Views Feather-Shaped Iridescent Cloud

Curiosity Views Rhythmic Rock Layers

Curiosity's 360-Degree View of Marker Band Valley

Curiosity Views Gediz Vallis

ChemCam Mosaic of Gediz Vallis Ridge

Curiosity Finds a Meteorite, Cacao

Curiosity's Close-Up of Rocks in Paraitepuy Pass

Curiosity's Navcams View Paraitepuy Pass

Curiosity's View of Paraitepuy Pass

Related Topic

Video .

Perseverance's Mastcam-Z Views Ingenuity's 47th Takeoff

News .

Engineers Keep an Eye on Fuel Supply of NASA’s Oldest Mars Orbiter

Audio .

Episode 12: Secrets of the Mars Rovers

News .

NASA’s Curiosity Views First ‘Sun Rays’ on Mars

News .

NASA’s Perseverance Rover Set to Begin Third Year at Jezero Crater

News .

NASA’s Perseverance Rover Shows Off Collection of Mars Samples

News .

NASA’s Curiosity Finds Surprise Clues to Mars’ Watery Past

News .

NASA’s Perseverance Rover Completes Mars Sample Depot

Event Feb. 16, 2023 .

Perseverance: Two Years on Mars

Audio .

Episode 11: Digging In: When Rovers Get Dirt on Mars

About JPL
Who We Are
Executive Council
Directors
Careers
Internships
The JPL Story
JPL Achievements
Documentary Series
Annual Reports
Missions
Current
Past
Future
All
News
All
Earth
Solar System
Stars and Galaxies
Subscribe to JPL News
Galleries
Images
Videos
Audio
Podcasts
Apps
Visions of the Future
Slice of History
Robotics at JPL
Events
Lecture Series
Team Competitions
Speakers Bureau
Calendar
Visit
Public Tours
Virtual Tour
Directions and Maps
Topics
JPL Life
Solar System
Mars
Earth
Climate Change
Exoplanets
Stars and Galaxies
Robotics
More
Asteroid Watch
NASA's Eyes Visualizations
Universe - Internal Newsletter
Social Media
Get the Latest from JPL
Follow Us

JPL is a federally funded research and development center managed for NASA by Caltech.

More from JPL
Careers Education Science & Technology Acquisitions JPL Store
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
Acquisitions
JPL Store
Related NASA Sites
Basics of Spaceflight
Climate Kids
Earth / Global Climate Change
Exoplanet Exploration
Mars Exploration
Solar System Exploration
Space Place
NASA's Eyes Visualization Project
Voyager Interstellar Mission
NASA
Caltech
Privacy
Image Policy
FAQ
Feedback
Site Managers: Veronica McGregor, Randal Jackson
Site Editors: Tony Greicius, Naomi Hartono
CL#: 21-0018