CURIOSITY FILMS

How many cameras can we find on Curiosity rover, the wall-e like robot that is actually rooming around the surface of Mars? Let's find out.
The rover's mast features seven cameras: the Remote Micro Imager, part of the Chemistry and Camera suite; four black-and-white Navigation Cameras (two on the left and two on the right) and two color Mast Cameras (Mastcams). The left Mastcam has a 34-millimeter lens and the right Mastcam has a 100-millimeter lens. There is one camera on the end of a robotic arm that is stowed in this graphic; it is called the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI). There are nine cameras hard-mounted to the rover: two pairs of black-and-white Hazard Avoidance Cameras in the front, another two pair mounted to the rear of the rover, (dashed arrows in the graphic) and the color Mars Descent Imager (MARDI), for a grand total of seveteen cameras.

Despite this unbelieveble ammount of hardware, it' absolutely not easy to output such an ultra-resolution, smooth-motion, detail-enhanced, color-corrected, interpolated from the original 4 frames per second to 30 frames per second footage. This video took fours weeks in the production, and plays real-time at the speed that Curiosity descended to the surface of Mars on August 6, 2012. If we think about it, it's the first proper sci-fi movie from the red planet. 20th Century Fox better start bewarin of Nasa entertainment.

 Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech, Bard Canning

ONE SMALL STEP

This is our little tribute to the greatest explorer of all times.

"Neil Armstrong was among the greatest of American heroes - not just of his time, but of all time.
When he and his fellow crew members lifted off aboard Apollo 11 in 1969, they carried with them the aspirations of an entire nation. They set out to show the world that the American spirit can see beyond what seems unimaginable - that with enough drive and ingenuity, anything is possible. And when Neil stepped foot on the surface of the moon for the first time, he delivered a moment of human achievement that will never be forgotten.
Neil's spirit of discovery lives on in all the men and women who have devoted their lives to exploring the unknown - including those who are ensuring that we reach higher and go further in space. That legacy will endure - sparked by a man who taught us the enormous power of one small step"

US President Barack Obama

Safe travels, Commander.