The HiRise camera is living up to its name, capturing a rare look at the veteran rover from way up in Martian orbit.
The image, taken on February 28, 2025, shows Curiosity as a tiny dark blot at the end of a rover track trail that stretches about 1,050 feet (320 meters) across the Martian surface. It’s the orbital equivalent of a candid camera, courtesy of the HiRISE (High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) camera aboard NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
The tracks, crunched into the Martian terrain over 11 separate drives made since February 2, were dug as Curiosity made its way from the planet’s Gediz Vallis channel toward its next science target: a rocky region that may feature boxwork formations, possibly shaped by groundwater in the planet’s ancient past.
