JPL releases billion pixel-panorama of Mars: Take a tour

Sit back, relax, and get ready to explore the red planet in incredible clarity. JPL has just released a billion pixel panorama view of the surface of Mars, and it is awesome.
Nearly 900 images were stitched together to create the panorama view--all of them taken by a suite of cameras aboard the Mars Curiosity Rover.

The images were taken at Rocknest--a windblown, rocky area of Mars where Curioisty did its first digging in the sand just a few months after it landed on the planet. Off in the distance--five miles away--you will see Mt. Sharp, which is where the rover is headed next.

PHOTOS: See Curiosity’s images from Mars

Curioisty captured the images in the panorama in the the days between Oct. 5 and Nov. 16 2012. If you are very observant, you might notice that the clarity of the atmosphere differs in one part of the panorama to the next--that’s because there was variable dustiness during the month when images were taken.

You don’t have to be so observant to notice that a small portion of the images are in black and white. Those images were taken with the rover’s navigation camera.

You can get to the panorama here, but before you go, I have a few suggestions to enhance your viewing experience. Personally, I prefer the panoramic view to the cylindrical view, and doing your exploration in full screen mode is a must: The clarity of the image is especially dazzling when it is big.

Have fun exploring!