NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover acquired this image using its SHERLOC WATSON camera, located on the turret at the end of the rover’s robotic arm.

Raw colours (unprocessed)

This image was acquired on Sept. 3, 2025 (Sol 1613) at the local mean solar time of 22:48:51.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

  • paulhammond5155@lemmy.worldOP
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    18 days ago

    I can’t say I’ve ever seen a picture of Mars at night with artificial lighting.

    The SHERLOC WATSON camera is on the rover’s robotic arm, with the camera placed really close to the target for this image. The width of the posted image is less than one inch (2.5 cm) across, and lit with just one bank of white LEDs. The use of just one bank of LEDs provides shadows, those shadows help reveal the surface texture etc. The white LEDs are banked on each side of the lens, here is a link to the image with the other bank of LEDs turned on Link1 and an image with both banks of white LEDs turned on Link2

    In addition to the white LEDs, the camera has two 365 nm long wavelength UV LEDs. Certain minerals fluoresce when exposed to specific wavelengths of UV light. They acquire images before using the UV (dark frame) then an image with the UV LED lit, and additional images after the LED is extinguished to see if there is any fluorescent emissions. The sol 1613 post UV light images we can just see the features of the target in an otherwise dark time exposure image. I can’t recall seeing that before, it does not appear to be coming from the surface so I can only assume the larger of the Mars moons (Phobos) was passing overhead during the exposure of the image, or they could have been targeting the surface with the UV laser that’s built into the camera suite Link3

    For those that want to learn more about the camera, here’s a great link4

    • SpecialSetOfSieves@lemmy.world
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      18 days ago

      we can just see the features of the target in an otherwise dark time exposure image. I can’t recall seeing that before

      There are a number of striking examples of lighter-toned features showing up neatly in the images you refer to (patch #43, the notoriously difficult patch #32), and there are more subtle examples as well (patch #28, which we made before leaving the river channel in 2024). I do plan to add a page to the guide I’m roughing out which will document these night-time UV-exposure images, but my plate is full enough for now 😁