The Other Shoe: The Mars Report - September 2nd, 2015

Looking Up at Mars Rover Curiosity in 'Buckskin' Selfie

(Curiosity Rover ‘Selfie’ Lower Mount Sharp)

. Welcome back My Dear Shoevians to The Other Shoe and 'The Mars Report' for September 2^nd , 2015. Today I bring you some of the most panoramic and incredible images, from the Curiosity rover, I have ever seen. I know that each and every week I talk about the “incredible images” I have to share, and somehow I don't doubt that harms my credibility. However, after you see what I have to share, today, maybe just maybe my credibility will remain intact. . We start with the image, above. This is a ‘selfie’ from the Curiosity rover while parked on the lower elevation of Mount Sharp. It was taken with the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on Aug. 5, 2015, during the 1,065th Martian day.
.
Now, My Dear Shoevians, there just are not a whole lot of images from Curiosity that I haven’t already shared with all of you right here in the pages of ‘The Mars Report’. However, I haven’t (yet) shared something. That is VIDEOS! That’s right, today I am going to share with all of you, My Dear Shoevians, several videos that have become available by NASA/JPL. I will post the images I do have to share, and then we will move right into the videos. So, stick around and keep on reading and viewing and shortly you will come to some great videos directly from the Martian surface and the Curiosity rover.
.

Geological Contact Zone Near 'Marias Pass' on Mars

[2]

(Geological Contact Zone Near 'Marias Pass' on Mars)

Our next image, above, was taken on lower Mount Sharp with the MAstCam camera on the Curiosity rover. The image was taken in July25th, 2015 just below ‘Marias Pass’ of Mount Sharp. What we see?Bedrock, this is an image of the bedrock at the base of Mount Sharp, and there are two different types of bedrock in this image. The darker, finely bedded bedrock higher in the image and overlying the mudstone stratigraphically is sandstone that the rover team calls the "Stimson" unit.
.

Test Rover at JPL During Preparation for Mars Rover's Low-Angle Selfie[/caption]

[3]

(Test Rover at JPL During Preparation for Mars Rover's Low-Angle Selfie)

.
The next image, above, shows a test rover back here on Earth. This rover is exactly the same as the Curiosity rover and is used as a test platform for running diagnostics for any problems they may encounter with the Curiosity rover while on the Martian surface. This practice version was taken at JPL's Mars Yard in July 2013, using the Vehicle System Test Bed (VSTB) rover, which has a test copy of MAHLI on its robotic arm. Again, this is a mosaic of images taken by Curiosity's arm-mounted Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) camera took 92 of component images.
.

High-Silica 'Lamoose' Rock

[4]

(High-Silica 'Lamoose' Rock)

.
This is another image taken by the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) of the Curiosity rover. It was taken in the "Marias Pass" area of Mt. Sharp on July 11^th, 2015. This shows a rock-face that is very high in silica. Silica is a rock-forming compound containing silicon and oxygen, commonly found on Earth as quartz. High levels of silica could indicate ideal conditions for preserving ancient organic material, if present, so the science team wants to take a closer look. The rock in this image was about four inches across and was noted had a very fine grain.
.

Curiosity Poster from NASA/JPL

(Curiosity Poster from NASA/JPL)

.
Above is a poster that I found for the Curiosity rover as issued by NASA/JPL. Now, I have tried and tried to find exactly where I downloaded this poster… to no avail. However, if you would like the PDF file that I have I would be happy to send it to you. Just message me via comments on any of the fourThe Other Shoe blog locations and I will email the PDF Curiosity poster directly to you. Now, for the part of the article that you all have been waiting for… the videos!
.

FIFTY YEARS OF MARS EXPLORATION

.
And, another video more focused just on the Curiosity rover mission:
.

THREE YEARS ON MARS – Curiosity Report Video

.
That, My Dear Shoevians brings us the end of this (abbreviated) edition of ‘The Mars Report’ for September 2^nd, 2015. I would like to take this time to say “Thank you!” to all of you, My Dear Shoevians, for dropping by and reading and watching. As always, if You have enjoyed your stay and this article? Please remember to ‘Like’ and ‘Share’ this article (and my blog) via any/all of your social media outlets. This way more and more people get to enjoy what you have enjoyed, here today.
.
Adieu!
.
Thank you!
.