Fact Sheet
A Passing Glance
Mars looms large before Rosetta, a European spacecraft that flew past the planet on Sunday. The craft used Mars' gravity to alter its course toward a comet. This image was snapped a few hours before the closest encounter, from a range of about 150,000 miles (240,000 km). The south polar ice cap is at the bottom, and thin, high-altitude clouds streak across the top. At its closest, Rosetta flew just 160 miles (250 km) from Mars. [ESA © 2007 MPS for OSIRIS Team MPS/UPD/LAM/IAA/RSSD/INTA/UPM/DASP/IDA]
|