Figure 1, Click on image for animation


Figure 2, Click on image for larger version


Figure 3, Click on image for larger version


Figure 4, Anaglyph

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover used its Mastcam instrument to take the 32 individual images that make up this panorama of the outcrop nicknamed "Mont Mercou." It took a second panorama, rolling sideways 13 feet (4 meters), to create a stereoscopic effect similar to a 3D viewfinder. The effect helps scientists get a better idea of the geometry of Mount Mercou's sedimentary layers, as if they're standing in front of the formation.

Both panoramas were taken on March 4, 2021, the 3,049th Martian day, or sol, of the mission, from a distance of about 130 feet (40 meters) from the cliff face, which is about 20 feet (6 meters) tall. They have been white-balanced so that the colors of the rock materials resemble how they would appear under daytime lighting conditions on Earth.

Included here is an animation (Figure 1) to show the stereoscopic effect, along with the two panoramas (Figures 2 and 3) used to create it. The additional anaglyph (Figure 4) offers a 3D glimpse when viewed with red-blue glasses.

Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego built and operates Mastcam. A division of Caltech, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California built the Curiosity rover and manages the Curiosity rover for the agency's Science Mission Directorate in Washington.

For more information about Curiosity, visit http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl or https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/msl/index.html.