Curiosity Self-Portrait Panorama

Explanation: This remarkable self-portrait of NASA's Mars Curiosity Rover includes a sweeping panoramic view of its current location in the Yellowknife Bay region of the Red Planet's Gale Crater . The rover's flat, rocky perch, known as “John Klein”, served as the site for Curiosity's first rock drilling activity. At the foot of the proud looking rover , a shallow drill test hole and a sample collection hole are 1.6 centimeters in diameter. The impressive mosaic was constructed using frames from the rover's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) and Mastcam . Used to take in the panoramic landscape frames, the Mastcam is standing high above the rover's deck. But MAHLI , intended for close-up work, is mounted at the end of the rover's robotic arm. The MAHLI frames used to create Curiosity's self-portrait exclude sections that show the arm itself and so MAHLI and the robotic arm are not seen. Check out this spectacular interactive version of Curiosity's self-portrait panorama.