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Want to see what Mars looked like a few days ago, so you can pretend you're flying in orbit around the red planet almost in realtime? You could be doing that right now, thanks to the European Space Agency's Mars webcam. Mounted on the Mars Express Probe is a visual light camera that basically takes pictures of the planet every day. ESA researchers post galleries of the images every few days, and even do "best of the year" compliations. One of my favorites, though, is a movie showing what Mars looked like over the course of a month — we've got it for you below. More »
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The European Space Agency's Mars Express Orbiter passed within a few kilometers of Phobos last week. While it was there, it took some stunning high resolution photos of the irregular Martian moon. We're talking almost "Phobos Street View" resolution here. Mars Express also took some shots with its stereo cameras. So put on your blue and red cardboard glasses and check out Phobos in thrilling 3D. More »
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This deep gorge known as the Echus Chasma was ripped into the Martian soil by gushing water, and scientists speculate that it may once have boasted giant, 4000-meter-high waterfalls. This image, by the European Space Agency's Mars Express satellite, was released this week along with a few others. We've got an even more gorgeous one for you below. More »
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Here's an orthoimage of the famous Olympus Mons on Mars, with the different colors representing different elevations. It's just a taste of the 3-D goodness to come. The European Space Agency is getting ready to release a new high-resolution Digital Terrain Model dataset that will let researchers build their own 3-D models of Mars' topography. The data comes thanks to the High Resolution Stereo Camera on the ESA's Mars Express orbiter. Knowing exactly where the surface of Mars is in relation to other features will help scientists interpret radar data and other studies. And maybe make insanely detailed Mars globes. I totally want one. [ESA] More »
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