Selfie On Mars: Nasa's Mars Rover 'Opportunity' Marks 10 Years With Self Portrait

Selfie On Mars: Rover's Self Portrait After Decade On The Red Planet

Nasa's ageing Mars Rover Opportunity has taken a self-portrait to mark 10 years on the Red Planet. And one thing is clear - it needs a bath.

Opportunity arrived on Mars in 2004, and was originally expected to explore the surface for about three months before shutting down.

Instead the robot has proven to be remarkably resilient to the elements, and has managed to last far, far longer - recently celebrating a full decade of sending back interesting data to Nasa scientists back on Earth.

Now Nasa has released this amazing picture of the robot, taken by its own panoramic camera in several stages.

The self-portrait looks as though it was taken by a hovering drone above the craft - but that's just an illusion caused by the way it is stitched together.

The picture shows the small robot caked in dust and grime from the surface. Luckily a few days later a strong wind came along and removed a of the dust.

Dusty Space Cloud

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