E-mail updates
Follow on Twitter
Subscribe to RSSWe've just had a lovely total lunar eclipse on Earth — so how about watching a solar eclipse on Mars? Pictures from NASA's Opportunity rover record just such an event, which occurred on Nov. 9. Neither of Mars' moons is big enough to cover the whole disk of the sun during an eclipse, so a partial blackout is the best Phobos could do in this video clip.
After the eclipse, you'll see a typical Martian sunset, stitched together from exposures taken on Nov. 4 and 5. The 30-second sequence is a speeded-up rendition of a sunset that would take 17 minutes in real time. The sky looks blue around the sun in these pictures because of the scattering effect produced by dust particles of a particular size in the Martian atmosphere. Farther away from the sun, the Martian sky takes on more of a reddish cast.
The scientists who created the rover movies say they're the next-best thing to being there. "These visualizations of an alien sunset show what it must have looked like for Opportunity, in a way we rarely get to see, with motion," rover science team member Mark Lemmon of Texas A&M University said in a NASA image advisory. Simulated images were added to the sequences to produce a smooth viewing experience.
More moving pictures from Mars:
- Deimos moves across the sun
- Watch Martian clouds fly by
- See a dust devil spin on Mars
- NASA movies from Opportunity
- NASA movies from Spirit rover
For the eclipse movie, the image sequencing was done by Emily Dean, Dale Theiling, Elaina McCartney and Jon Proton. Image processing was done by Jim Bell and Mark Lemmon. Event timing was handled by Tom Duxbury. The team expressed thanks to members of the operations and support teams in the NASA/JPL Mars Exploration Program and Deep Space Network. Credit for both movies goes to NASA, JPL-Caltech, Cornell University and Texas A&M.
Connect with the Cosmic Log community by hitting the "like" button on the Cosmic Log Facebook page or following msnbc.com's science editor, Alan Boyle, on Twitter (@b0yle).
Leave a Comment:
Thats pretty cool stuff. How did the camera man breath??? I didn't know there was air on Mars! I hope he brought his 12 gauge in case of little green men who might be a threat to national security.
ha ha ha ! Very good...
It was NASA's rover who filmed that, smart ass.
breath = noun
breathe = verb
Learn how to write in English, please.
@jeanne maybe its just a joke. Merry Christmas!
Wow, showing video from Mars adds a whole new level of perspective, beyond photos. Do any other flip-book style videos exist, maybe of a sandstorm?
Yes, definitely need to send more probes with video capabilities going forward :-)
Brad, did you follow any of the links provided? The last two are links to stuff you will enjoy.
As Spock says: Fascinating !
which god made this possible! need to grats him her it
No god on Mars. The Bible doesn't mention astronauts or space travel.
Extra-dimensial travel, however, is mentioned...
The gods at NASA.
It's not a question of whether God exists in space or not. The question is can the Holy Spirit exist without the presence of life and the answer is no.
Cool pictures though.
Nice job getting this out Alan!
Au contraire! The Bible speaks AGAINST space tarvel and exploration.
Psalm 115:16 says, "The heavens, even the heavens, are the LORD'S: but the earth hath he given to the children of men."
But rebellious and unbelieving men trespass willfully against the God of Creation.
LiberalPatriot_1
"Thats pretty cool stuff. How did the camera man breath??? I didn't know there was air on Mars! I hope he brought his 12 gauge in case of little green men who might be a threat to national security."
You cant be a liberal and a patriot, moron. The two are complete opposites. That's like refering to Nobama as a Christian and Native Born, its just not possible....
If you can be a gay, liberal, marine patriot in the military...right?
"You cant be a liberal and a patriot".
Maybe a liberal can't be the kind of "patriot" who approves of whatever the country does in the wars. Who approves torturing "enemies" because they are by definition unworthy of humane treatment. Coincidentally, who thinks that only his fellow citizens deserve human rights. Though not those who are "obviously criminal".
I think, germans defined "a patriot" the same way during the WWII.
marine 2414065- if you are really a marine, then you are a pretty dumb one. as a retired United States Marine who didnt destroy my brain with alcohol as so many others did i can understand the facts that prove Obama is a natural born citizen and a christian. how come you republican scumbags want the democrats to respect republicans when they are in office but fail to do the same when there is an intelligent democrat in office. Im no Obama fan, but i still see that he wants the best for the country and not just for his handful of rich friends.
SEMPER FI!!!