NASA’s efforts to understand the universe and planets as Mars they have not stopped during the last years since the red planet is under study.
The United States Aerospace Agency recently reported that the Curiosity rover captured a dazzling sunset at the start of a new cloud imaging campaign.
According to the Mars mission exploration from NASA, the amazing image of the martian sunset was captured by Curiosity on February 2 when the sun’s rays, also known as crepusculars, showed up very clearly.
The image was captured by the rover during the last few days of the rover’s twilight cloud study that builds on 2021 observations of noctilucent, or night-glowing, clouds. While most Martian clouds float no more than 37 miles (60 kilometers) above the ground and are made up of water ice, the clouds in the latest images appear to be at higher altitudes, where it’s very cold.
The aerospace agency also mentioned that just like on Earth, clouds provide scientists with complex information, crucial to understanding climate, as it allows astronomers to understand when and where clouds form.
The 2021 cloud survey included more images from Curiosity’s black-and-white navigation cameras, which provide a detailed view of a cloud’s structure as it moves. But the recent survey, which began in January and ends in mid-March, relies more often on the rover’s Mast Color Camera, or Mastcam, which helps scientists see how cloud particles grow over time. .
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In addition to the image of the sun’s rays, Curiosity captured an array of colorful, feathery clouds on January 27. When illuminated by sunlight, certain types of clouds can create a rainbow-like display called iridescence.
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