Mars is a planet with all sorts of things to see, and these two latest pictures from NASA's Curiosity rover show seemingly endless dunes all over its surface. For decades, NASA's been sending rovers to Mars to explore the Red Planet and learn more about our planetary neighbor. It all started with Sojourner in 1997, followed by Spirit and Opportunity in 2004. While those three rovers have since ceased operations, NASA still uses Curiosity and Perseverance (landing in 2012 and 2021, respectively) to continue uncovering secrets of the Martian world.

Despite its age, Curiosity remains a very active and important part of NASA's Mars missions. In 2021 alone, the rover's shared pictures of strangely-shaped rocks on Mars, large mountains, and a close-up look at the planet's rusty sand. For a rover that's over nine years old, that's pretty impressive.

Curiosity uploaded another bunch of photos on November 30, and two of them stick out as being particularly eye-catching. The first photo (seen above) showcases a typical Mars view. The ground below Curiosity is nothing but sand, pebbles, and large rocks. As you look off in the distance, you quickly notice massive dunes much further away from Curiosity. The dunes appear to come in a variety of sizes, and looking at the far left and right of the image, they appear to never end.

A Different View, More Mars Dunes


Curiosity shared that first picture on November 30 at 00:31:01 EST. Just a few seconds later at 00:31:32, it shared the second picture that shows the dunes from a slightly different angle. It appears that Curiosity stayed in the same spot but rotated its camera towards the right. Not only do we get a better view of the valley below Curiosity, but it's apparent that the dunes keep extending even further. It's well known that Mars is home to tons of dunes given its sandy nature, but it's still impressive to see just how massive they can really be.

For now, rovers like Curiosity and Perseverance are the only things that get to experience these sights. Mars' lack of oxygen and cold temperatures make it dangerous to human life. That said, we're quickly nearing a future where the first humans will be able to experience Mars firsthand. NASA plans on sending the very first astronauts to Mars at some point in the 2030s. There's a lot of work that needs to be done before that can happen, but it'll be a reality before you know it. Rovers may be the only ones sending these kinds of pictures right now, but in the not too distant future, they'll be coming from fellow humans.