NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory released a 360-degree video giving the viewers a virtual tour of the Martian surface. As of February 8, the Curiosity has been on the red planet for three years and 186 days.
Curiosity landed on the Martian surface on August 6, 2012. Since September 11, 2014, the rover has been exploring the slopes of Mount Sharp, trying to find out more information about the history of the Martian planet.
The rover has already travelled about 7.4 kilometers. The 360-degrees video which gives the viewer, a perfect view of the Martian surface, has been created by stitching together the images taken by the Mars Curiosity Rover on December 18th, 2015.
The latest pictures show the Namib Dune with the Mount Sharp in the distant horizon. The picture was taken by the Rover in its 1,197th sol (a Martian day) of its mission. A Martian Day is longer by about 40 minutes as compared to an Earth Day.
The first version of the Video saw its release on Facebook on January 30th.However, the video was not perfect because of the manner in which the images were stitched together.
The horizon was warped, and the 360-degree panoramic image was disoriented. However, the latest images released by NASA are a vast improvement and gives a cleaner and virtual experience.
It is not the first time that the Rover has taken a 360 degree image. In 2012, NASA had released a panoramic picture of the Curiosity site. However, the situation is vastly different today.
Today, Facebook and YouTube permit users to upload 360-degree videos, and people can see and interact with the Red Planet.
