Like any good camera-wielding tourist, NASA's Mars Global Surveyor continues to shoot stunning pictures as it begins the second extension of its successful mission.
Some newly released images show a 3-D view of layers on the martian surface that may be ancient sedimentary rocks, while others show an unusual spiral-shaped cloud over the giant Arsia Mons volcano.
The images are available at: http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mgs and http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/1yearExtend/ .
Launched Nov. 7, 1996, Global Surveyor entered the martian orbit on Sept. 12, 1997. The mission has studied the entire Martian surface, atmosphere, and interior, and has returned more data about the red planet than all other Mars missions combined.
Mars Global Surveyor is managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. JPL's industrial partner is Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, which developed and operates the spacecraft. The Mars Orbiter Camera is operated by Malin Space Science Systems, San Diego, Calif.