Higher Order Aberrations

jtotheizzoe:

The HiRISE Imaging Project is like Google Earth for Mars!

Have you ever wanted to tour the surface of Mars right from your own home? Of course you have, that’s a silly question. The HiRISE project has been cataloging super-detailed images of the Martian surface as part of the mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. 

Using either special software available on their website, or just by combing through the image archives (Trust me. you want to do this! They have 3-D and stereo images too, if you’re into that.), you can get an idea of the amazing and odd details that make up the landscape of the red planet. It’s really a good way to get lost in space for hours, so be warned!

The image above shows seasonal carbon dioxide ice covering a kind of sand dune on the Martian north pole, along with dark spots where the ice has ruptured and allowed minerals and sand to blow around.

(via HiRISE)

(Source: jtotheizzoe)