Perseverance Views 'Bright Angel'

A CLOSER LOOK

NASA's Perseverance rover was traveling in the channel of an ancient river, Neretva Vallis, when it captured this view of an area of scientific interest nicknamed "Bright Angel" – the light-toned area in the distance at right. The rover used one of its navigation cameras on June 6, 2024, the 1,172nd Martian day, or sol, of the mission to take the image. Bright Angel is at the base of the northern wall of the river channel, which fed Jezero Crater with fresh water billions of years ago. The area features light-toned rocky outcrops that may represent either ancient sediment that later filled the channel or possibly much older rock that was subsequently exposed by river erosion. A key objective for Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient micro

Explore NASA's original image record for credits and available downloads.