Mars Exploration Images

Black and white images of Martian landscapes captured by rovers, showcasing rocky terrains, ridges, and distant horizons under a vast sky.

Looking Up from the Deep

What Lies Ahead (left-eye)

What Lies Ahead

This image from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover, Opportunity, shows the lower reaches of 'Murray Ridge,' informally named to honor the late Bruce Murray, who led NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory through a period of great challenge and achievement.

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover used its Navigation Camera (Navcam) on April 11, 2014, to record this scene of a butte called 'Mount Remarkable' and surrounding outcrops at a waypoint called 'the Kimberley' inside Gale Crater.

Near 'Endurance' on Sol 115 (left eye)

Opportunity View on Sol 109 (right eye)

Looking Up from the Deep

Martian Landscape

High-gain Antenna & Terrain

New Record Five-Wheel Drive, Spirit's Sol 1856

Rover Camera Mosaic of Lander & Wedge

Rocky Terrain & Airbags

First Look at Martian Arctic Plains

This stereo scene combines frames taken by the navigation camera on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit during the 1,871st Martian day, or sol, of Spirit's mission on Mars (April 8, 2009). You will need 3-D glasses to view this image.

'Columbia Hills' at Last!

The Bumpy Road Ahead

Looking at 'Endurance' on Sol 108 (right eye)

View of Spirit's Climb from Six Months Earlier

The flat-faced rock near the center of this image is a target for contact investigation by NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity in early March 2015. The rock includes a target called 'Sergeant Charles Floyd.'

Saying Goodbye to 'Bonneville' Crater

This full-circle panorama shows the terrain around the NASA Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity on part of a relatively flat, light-toned outcrop called 'Whitewater Lake' on Sept. 13, 2012.

Spirit's Shadow, Sol 153 (Right Eye)

Spirit's View on Sol 147 (Left Eye)

Ready to Rock and Roll

Behold 'Endurance'! (left eye)

This 360-degree panorama shows evidence of a successful first test drive for NASA's Curiosity rover.

Spirit Drive Animation, Sols 365 to 390

This full-circle, panorama shows the terrain around the NASA Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity on part of a relatively flat, light-toned outcrop called 'Whitewater Lake.' The basin of Endeavour Crater is in the left half of the image.

High on 'West Spur' (Right Eye)

Flat

. Perseverance Makes Tracks in Boulder Field. This mosaic shows part of the path NASA's Perseverance Mars rover took through a portion of a boulder field dubbed Snowdrift Peak. It was generated using images taken by one of the rover's navigation cameras on July 28, 2023, the 866th day, or sol, of the mission. With the help of its self-driving autonomous navigation system, AutoNav, Perseverance traversed the boulder field much more quickly than previous rovers could have. A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust). Subsequent NASA missions, in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth fo

NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit took these images that have been combined into this stereo, 180-degree view of the rover's surroundings on March 23, 2009. 3D glasses are necessary to view this image.

Building Up Endurance

Spirit Heads Toward History (left eye)

The left side of this 360-degree panorama from NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows the long rows of ripples on a linear shaped dune in the Bagnold Dune Field on the northwestern flank of Mount Sharp.

Clouds over 'Endurance' on Sol 290

This scene combines three frames taken by the navigation camera on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit during the 1,869th Martian day, or sol, of Spirit's mission on Mars (April 6, 2009). It spans 120 degrees, with south at the center.

Contrasting Martian Terrains

Signs of Soft-Sediment Deformation at Slickrock

Soil clinging to the right middle and rear wheels of NASA's Mars rover Curiosity can be seen in this image taken by the Curiosity's Navigation Camera after the rover's third drive on Mars.

This image shows the tracks left by NASA's Curiosity rover on Aug. 22, 2012, as it completed its first test drive on Mars. This image was taken by a front Hazard-Avoidance camera, which has a fisheye lens.

Up-Close Look at 'Bread-Basket'

Tracks of Art

The target beneath the tool turret at the end of the rover's robotic arm in this image from NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity is 'Private John Potts,' which slices through the western rim of Endeavour Crater.

Making Tracks on Mars (right-eye)

A rippled linear dune of dark Martian sand, Nathan Bridges Dune, dominates this full-circle panorama from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) of NASA's Curiosity Mars rover. This dune was one research stop of the rover mission's campaign to investigate active Martian dunes. The feature was informally named in 2017 in memory of Nathan Bridges (1966-2017), a planetary scientist who was a leader of the Curiosity team's dune campaign. The scene combines 112 images taken with Mastcam's left-eye camera on Feb. 5, 2017, during the 1,601st Martian day, or sol, of Curiosity's work on Mars. The panorama has been white-balanced so that colors of the rock and sand materials resemble how they would appear under daytime lighting conditions on Earth. The center is toward east-southeast and both ends are toward west-northwest. The dark butte on the horizon in the left half is Ireson Hill. Upper Mount Sharp is on the horizon in the center. An annotated figure and full resolution TIFF file is available at

Backshell Located

Lower slopes of Mount Sharp appear at the top of this image taken by the right Navigation Camera (Navcam) of NASA's Mars rover Curiosity at the end of a drive of about 135 feet during the 329th Martian day, or sol, of the rover's work on Mars.

The sinuous rock feature in the lower center of this mosaic of images recorded by the NASA Mars rover Curiosity is called 'Snake River.' Curiosity gets a closer look at Snake River for before proceeding to other nearby rocks.

This frame from an animation flips back and forth between images taken before and after deployment of the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit's bogie, a part of the rover's suspension system that extends the wheel base. These images were taken by Spirit's hazard avoidance camera. An animation is available at http //photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA05040

Downward Slope

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover used its Mast Camera, or Mastcam, to take this 360-degree panorama on March 23, 2022, the 3,423th Martian day, or sol, of the mission. The team has informally described the wind-sharpened rocks seen here as gator-back rocks because of their scaly appearance. Wind-sharpened rocks like these are called ventifacts, and are responsible for chewing up Curiosity's wheels earlier in the mission. Since then, rover engineers have found ways to slow wheel wear, including a traction control algorithm. They also plan rover routes that avoid driving over such rocks, including these latest ventifacts, which are made of sandstone - the hardest type of rock Curiosity has encountered on Mars. These rocks form the surface of the Greenheugh Pediment, a broad, sloping plain in the foothills of Mount Sharp. The floor of Gale Crater is visible along the edges of the mosaic. When Curiosity's team saw the gator-back rocks, they ultimately decided to turn the rover around and take a

Soil Sample Poised at TEGA Door

Boulder 'Big Joe' And Surface Changes On Mars

NASA's Perseverance Mars rover captured this mosaic of a location nicknamed Castell Henllys using its Mastcam-Z camera on April 13, 2023, the 763rd Martian day, or sol, of the mission. The rounded boulders seen here are believed to have been washed into Jezero Crater, which Perseverance is exploring, by strong flood waters billions of years ago. This occurred during one of three major periods that scientists have identified in the development of the lake and river system that occupied Jezero in the ancient past. This view looks toward the southwest, with the Castell Henllys area approximately 328 feet (100 meters) away. The mosaic is made up of three images that were stitched together after being sent back to Mars. The image has been processed to improve contrast on the terrain. Arizona State University leads the operations of the Mastcam-Z instrument, working in collaboration with Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego, on the design, fabrication, testing, and operation of the camer

NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity used its navigation camera to take the images combined into this 360-degree cylindrical view of the rover's surroundings on the 1,950th Martian day, or sol, of its surface mission (July 19, 2009).

NASA's Mars Exploration Rover used its panoramic camera to record this view of the rim of a crater about 65 kilometers (40 miles) in the distance, on the southwestern horizon. This crater, Bopolu, is about 19 kilometers (12 miles) in diameter.

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover used the Navigation Camera (Navcam) on its mast to catch this look-back eastward at wheel tracks from driving through and past 'Dingo Gap' inside Gale Crater.

This image shows NASA's Opportunity's climb out of Victoria crater. It is the first frame of a movie that spans three days when the rover exited the crater at the alcove called Duck

Spirit's View on Sol 147 (Right Eye)

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover captured this 360-degree panorama using its black-and-white navigation cameras, or Navcams, at a location where it collected a sample from a rock nicknamed Sequoia. This panorama was captured on Oct. 21 and 26, 2023, the 3,984th and 3,989th Martian days, or sols, of the mission. The sample from Sequoia marks the 39th hole that Curiosity drilled into the Martian surface. While the Perseverance rover collects intact rock cores, Curiosity's rock samples are powderized, then sprinkled into instruments within the rover's chassis. These instruments can provide highly detailed compositional data. Since 2014, Curiosity has been ascending the 3-mile-tall (5-kilometer-tall) Mount Sharp, a mountain with distinct layers that formed in different eras of ancient Martian history. By studying the differences between these layers, scientists are learning more about how the Martian climate - and especially its water - changed over time.

Ready to Roll-2

Closing in on Heat Shield

NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity drove about 12 feet (3.67 meters) on May 8, 2012, after spending 19 weeks working on the north slope of an outcrop called Greeley Haven while solar power was too low for driving during the Martian winter.

Spirit's Surroundings on Sol 337

This image taken by a front Hazard-Avoidance camera on NASA's Curiosity shows track marks from the rover's first Martian drives.

Southern Half of Spirit's 'Bonestell' Panorama (False Color)

NASA's Mars Pathfinder's forward rover ramp can be seen successfully unfurled in this image, taken in stereo by the Imager camera. The large rock dubbed 'Wedge' is at lower right. 3-D glasses are necessary to identify surface detail.

This view from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover covers an area in 'Bridger Basin' that includes the locations where the rover drilled a target called 'Big Sky' on the mission's Sol 1119 (Sept. 29, 2015).

View of Phoenix's Surroundings as of Sol 2

NASA's Mars rover Curiosity drove 83 feet eastward during the 102nd Martian day, or sol, of the mission (Nov. 18, 2012). At the end of the drive, Curiosity's view was toward 'Yellowknife Bay' in the 'Glenelg' area of Gale Crater.

This anaglyph view of 'Half Dome,' 25 meters to the west of the Soujourner, was produced by NASA's Mars Pathfinder's Imager camera. 3D glasses are necessary to identify surface detail.

Spirit Begins Drive Around Home Plate

Looking Back, Spirit Sol 90

Peering at Pesky 'Jammerbugt'

This image is from a test series used to chacterize the 100-millimeter Mast Camera on NASA's Curiosity rover. It was taken on Aug. 23, 2012, and looks south-southwest from the rover's landing site.

This patch of windblown sand and dust downhill from a cluster of dark rocks is the 'Rocknest' site, which has been selected as the likely location for first use of the scoop on the arm of NASA's Mars rover Curiosity.

Looking Back, Opportunity Sol 70

Surface Sampler Arm

The MAHLI camera on NASA's Curiosity rover is carried at an angle when the rover's arm is stowed for driving. Still, the camera is able to record views of the terrain Curiosity is crossing in Gale Crater.

Sojourner Rover Leaving the Rock

After a U-Turn

The rover is positioned at a patch of flat outcrop called 'John Klein,' which was selected as the site for the first rock-drilling activities by NASA's Curiosity. This self-portrait was acquired to document the drilling site.

This images from a sequence of images that combines 32 images of clouds moving eastward across a Martian horizon. The Surface Stereo Imager on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander took this set of images on Sept. 18, 2008,

Behold 'Endurance'! (3-D)

This frame from an animation links two images taken by the front hazard avoidance camera on the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit. The rover is stowing and unstowing its robotic arm, or instrument deployment device. The device is designed to hold and maneuver the various instruments on board that will help scientists get up-close and personal with martian rocks and soil. An animation is available at http //photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA05045

Looking at 'Endurance' on Sol 108

These two images, taken five Martian days (sols) apart by the front hazard-avoidance camera on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity, document the Martian sky above the rover's Endeavour Crater location becoming dustier.

Opportunity at Work Inside Victoria Crater

First Look at Martian Arctic Plains

Stereo Images of Wind Tails Near Chimp

NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity used its navigation camera to record this view in the eastward driving direction after completing a drive on July 17, 2011, that took the rover's total driving distance on Mars beyond 20 miles.

NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity recorded this view of a crater informally named 'Freedom 7' shortly before the 50th anniversary of the first American in space: astronaut Alan Shepard's flight in the Freedom 7 spacecraft.

Adirondack's True Self

Mars Rover Studies Soil on Mars

Part of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity's array of photovoltaic cells is visible in the foreground of this image. Opportunity took this picture showing a light-toned rock, Tisdale

A jagged horizon of the nucleus of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko appears in this image taken by the navigation camera on the ESA's Rosetta spacecraft during the second half of October 2014.

This image shows the calibration target for the Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument on NASA's Curiosity rover. The calibration target is one square and a group of nine circles that look dark in the black-and-white image.

Afternoon on Chryse Planitia - Viking Lander 1 Camera 1 Mosaic

Opportunity Trenches Martian Soil

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