Wired has a collection of lesser-seen images from the Mars Curiosity Rover. Over the last year, the incredible rover has drilled into rock, rolled around the surface of the red planet, and taken quite a few striking photos. Here are some good ones.
Mars Landscape
We think of the Red Planet as red but Curiosity shows that the Martian surface can come in a wide variety of chocolate browns, ruddy pinks, dusty yellows, and even greenish tinges. Here, the rover looks over a small rise towards the foothills of Mount Sharp.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Curving Rock
Curiosity inspects a nice rock formation just outside Yellowknife Bay.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Shattered Plain
Curiosity channels its inner Ansel Adams during its most northern sojourn in Yellowknife Bay.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Texture
The rover’s right Mastcam captures an interestingly textured rock.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Dusty Valve
Wires coil around Curiosity’s intake valve, which allows it to bring samples of the Martian soil to its inner laboratory instruments for analysis.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Drill and Lasers
A line of small holes represent laser shots running up the right side of this image while a larger borehole from Curiosity’s drill occupies the lower left.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Turret
The rover keeps a number of instruments on the “hand” of its long arm, seen here.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Rock Row
Looking like a small fence, a row of rocks lines up on the Martian ground.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Filter
The intake filter leading to Curiosity’s interior laboratory, which sifts out only the finest dust grains.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Foreground
The rover looks out over a wide plain to the rim of Gale crater behind it.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Fish Eye
A rounded black-and-white shot looking towards Mount Sharp, showing rocks and tracks in the foreground.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Saying Hi
On its 85th day on Mars, Curiosity tilted its handheld camera upside down and backwards and snapped a funny-looking selfie.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Rock Close-Up
Curiosity’s handheld MAHLI camera took very high magnification shots of this rock.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Rock Collection
Mars is mostly covered in rocks. This small collection is indicative of most of the planet.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Brushes
Two small brushes help clear the drilling residue from Curiosity’s boreholes.
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS