NASA’s Curiosity Probe has already yielded great spectacles from Mars like the 1.8 billion pixel image revealed in March 2020 and now we have new captures coming from it where the martian clouds are shown in high quality.
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Cloud images were captured in the area of the equator of Mars during the coldest season on the planet. According to NASA, they are formed by water ice crystals, which makes them even more interesting for research on the presence of life.
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Interestingly, recent studies show that clouds are becoming more and more common on the planet. However, observations made by Curiosity between March 19 and March 31 this year pointed out that they float 60 kilometers above the ground and may actually be composed of carbon dioxide (dry ice) rather than water.
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Observations will continue to be carried out normally to determine the composition of these clouds, as they are essential for the Martian climate, which directly influences the possibility of life on the planet.
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The black and white images above were captured by Navcams, which are also used for Curiosity navigation, but there is also Mastcam, which is able to make images with more colors, as you can see in the GIF below Mont Mercou, where it currently is. the rover is located.
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In addition to the clouds, the Curiosity rover also studies Martian rocks, all aiming to unravel the mysteries of the past and future of Mars, where fungi have already been found and may be the first form of life ever seen outside of Earth.
What do you think Curiosity’s next discovery on the Red Planet will be?
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