It’s a 3D model created from 3 sets of images, and the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) data which was one of five instruments on the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft, which operated in Mars orbit from September 1997 to November 2006.
MOLA acquired elevation data from all over Mars. That elevation data can be used to make a hi-definition 3D model and the images from the 3 missions can be overlaid on the model to create scenes like these, so they are real images, but overlain on a 3D model of the surface of Mars. The mission teams use these models to plan the rover’s path.
Who took this photo?
It’s a 3D model created from 3 sets of images, and the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) data which was one of five instruments on the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft, which operated in Mars orbit from September 1997 to November 2006.
MOLA acquired elevation data from all over Mars. That elevation data can be used to make a hi-definition 3D model and the images from the 3 missions can be overlaid on the model to create scenes like these, so they are real images, but overlain on a 3D model of the surface of Mars. The mission teams use these models to plan the rover’s path.
HRSC images: ESA/DLR/FU-BERLIN,
CTX images: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
HiRISE images: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona