The robotic rover caught the rays of the descending sun as it started a new cloud-imaging mission on the Red Planet
. Cloud studies can also reveal details of the winds that pass over the planet's surface.
The 2021 survey of Mars' noctilucent clouds was conducted using Curiosity's black and white navigation cameras which were able to provide a detailed look at cloud structures as they moved across the Martian skyline. This new twilight survey, which began in January 2023 and will run until mid-March this year, produces color images thanks to also incorporating Curiosity's color Mast Camera .
Also as part of this observing campaign just after sunset on Jan. 27, 2023, Curiosity also captured a beautiful image of a feather-like cloud over Mars. The color capacities of Mastcam allowed the rainbow-like, or iridescent, qualities of the cloud to shine. This feather-shaped iridescent cloud was captured just after sunset on Jan. 27, 2023, the 3,724th Martian day, or sol, of Curiosity's mission. Studying the colors in iridescent clouds tells scientists something about particle size within the clouds and how they grow over time.
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