NASA’s Curiosity rover captured a new panorama of Martian cliffs known as yardangs on August 11, 2026. The images were taken at 8:30 a.m. local Mars time during the 4,982nd sol of the mission. The panorama consists of six individual frames stitched together without white balancing to preserve the morning light.
The yardang layer spans approximately 16 kilometers across the northwestern part of Mount Sharp. Curiosity has been climbing this 5-kilometer-tall mountain since 2014 and recently reached a record elevation of 1 kilometer. Scientists hypothesize that the yardangs may have formed from ancient volcanic ash deposits.
The rover is currently in the second year of its fifth extended mission. Over the next year, Curiosity will traverse areas rich in sulfates and carbonates. Researchers aim to reach the base of the yardangs by 2027 to collect direct data using the rover’s robotic arm.
The mission is managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, with the Mastcam instrument provided by Malin Space Science Systems. Mount Sharp’s layers, which the rover continues to study, provide historical data on the presence of ancient lakes and streams on the Martian surface.
