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Explore: First high definition 360-degree view of Mars

Michael Geheren

To interact: Use the controls in the top left (or pinch) to zoom in and out of the image. Click (or touch) and drag your cursor to move around in the image. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS. 

MARS (NewsNation Now) — The Mars Perseverance rover continues to memorize the planet Earth, with photos and videos from the Red Planet.


NASA released the first HD look around its new home in Jezero Crater. The panoramic photo was stitched together from 142 different images.

“We’re nestled right in a sweet spot, where you can see different features similar in many ways to features found by Spirit, Opportunity, and Curiosity at their landing sites,” said Jim Bell of Arizona State University’s School of Earth and Space Exploration, the instrument’s principal investigator.

This wind-carved rock seen in first 360-degree panorama taken by the Mastcam-Z instrument shows just how much detail is captured by the camera systems.

The cameras help scientists discover the geologic history of the crater and assist in identifying rocks and sediment worthy of a closer look. Eventually, the “Mastcam-Z” will help NASA determine which rocks to send back to Earth.

“The newly released panorama reveals the crater rim and cliff face of an ancient river delta in the distance. The camera system can reveal details as small as 0.1 to 0.2 inches across near the rover and 6.5 to 10 feet across in the distant slopes along the horizon,” according to NASA.

Scientists will discuss the Martian surface photo on Thursday at 4 p.m. EST.

The rover is also sending back images in real-time for Earthlings to explore. A few from Wednesday are in the slideshow below.

NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover acquired this image during its descent to Mars, using its Descent Stage Down-Look Camera. This camera is mounted on the bottom of the descent stage and looks at the rover. This image was acquired on Feb. 24, 2021 (Sol 4) at the local mean solar time of 10:45:40. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover acquired this image using its Rover Down-Look Camera. This camera is mounted on the bottom of the rover and looks down at the surface. This image was acquired on Feb. 24, 2021 (Sol 4) at the local mean solar time of 10:23:40. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover acquired this image using its Rover Down-Look Camera. This camera is mounted on the bottom of the rover and looks down at the surface. This image was acquired on Feb. 24, 2021 (Sol 4) at the local mean solar time of 10:23:17. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Nagin Cox, a NASA systems engineer, joined NewsNation this week to discuss the rover mission.

Cox joined NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 1993 and served as an orbital analyst at NORAD Space Command. Watch the full discussion in the player below.