homehome Home chatchat Notifications


Indian Mars Orbiter Reveals Stunning 3D Images of Martian Canyon

A while ago, we were telling you about the Indian Orbiter Mission to Mars – the cheapest Mars mission ever. The probe made history as it entered Martian orbit, and is still sending high quality data back to Earth, as well as amazing pictures. Now these photographs focus on the Ophir Chasma, a giant canyon on […]

Dragos Mitrica
August 19, 2015 @ 10:25 am

share Share

A while ago, we were telling you about the Indian Orbiter Mission to Mars – the cheapest Mars mission ever. The probe made history as it entered Martian orbit, and is still sending high quality data back to Earth, as well as amazing pictures. Now these photographs focus on the Ophir Chasma, a giant canyon on Mars that’s 62 km (38.5 miles) wide and 317 km (197 miles) long.

“The word chasma has been designated by the International Astronomical Union to refer to an elongate, steepsided depression. Ophir Chasma is part ofthe largest canyon system in the solar system known as vallesmarineris. The walls of the chasma contain many layers and the floors contain large deposits of layered materials. This image is taken on 19th July 2015 at an altitude of 1857 km with a resolution of 96 m,” the Indian Space Agency wrote.

Ophir Chasma is part of the largest canyon system in the solar system – it’s so big that it would stretch across the entire US. It’s also part of a huge rift system, Valles Marineris. Although Valles Marineris has been seen several times both from Earth and from Mars orbit, it’s the first time we actually get to see it like this. These images were taken by the Mars Colour Camera on board India’s orbiter on 19 July 2015, at an altitude of 1,857 km.

This makes the entire Indian mission even more spectacular. Not only did they manage to enter Martian orbit on the first try (a first; half of all Mars missions fail before they reach orbit), but they did so while costing just US$74 million – less than the $100 million budget for the movie Gravity, and about six times less than NASA’s Mars Orbiter Mission.

share Share

Astronomers Found a Star That Exploded Twice Before Dying

A rare double explosion in space may rewrite supernova science.

Menstrual Cups Passed a Brutal Space Test. They Could Finally Fix a Major Problem for Many Astronauts

Reusable menstrual cups pass first test in space-like flight conditions.

A Rocket Carried Cannabis Seeds and 166 Human Remains into Space But Their Capsule Never Made It Back

The spacecraft crashed into the Pacific Ocean after a parachute failure, ending a bold experiment in space biology and memorial spaceflight.

An Asteroid Might Hit the Moon in 2032 and Turn It Into a Massive Fireworks Show from Earth

The next big space threat isn't to Earth. It's to the Moon.

This Colorful Galaxy Map Is So Detailed You Can See Stars Being Born

Astronomers unveil the most detailed portrait yet of a nearby spiral galaxy’s complex inner life

A NASA Spacecraft Just Spotted a Volcano on Mars Like We Have Never Seen Before

NASA's Mars Odyssey captures a surreal new image of Arsia Mons at sunrise

Astronomers Found a Volcano Hiding in Plain Sight on Mars

It's not active now, and it hasn't been active for some time, but it's a volcano.

The World’s Largest Camera Is About to Change Astronomy Forever

A new telescope camera promises a 10-year, 3.2-billion-pixel journey through the southern sky.

The Sun Will Annihilate Earth in 5 Billion Years But Life Could Move to Jupiter's Icy Moon Europa

When the Sun turns into a Red Giant, Europa could be life's final hope in the solar system.

A Massive Particle Blasted Through Earth and Scientists Think It Might Be The First Detection of Dark Matter

A deep-sea telescope may have just caught dark matter in action for the first time.