NASA’s Curiosity rover has documented a significant expanse of polygonal surface features on Mars, marking the largest concentration of such patterns encountered during the mission to date. The images were captured on June 19 and 20, 2026, corresponding to the 4,930th and 4,931st Martian days of the rover's exploration.
The observed polygons, which measure between 2 and 4 inches in diameter, surround a sand-capped butte known as “Miraflores.” The 360-degree panorama was constructed from 340 individual photographs taken by the rover's Mast Camera (Mastcam) as it continued its climb up the foothills of Mount Sharp, a 3-mile-tall mountain the vehicle has been scaling since 2014.
Researchers are currently analyzing the characteristics of these textures to determine their origin. Polygonal formations on the Martian surface can result from various geological processes, including sediment shrinkage due to mineral changes or water loss, temperature fluctuations, compaction, or the drying of surface materials similar to terrestrial mud cracks.
The mission is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, for the agency's Science Mission Directorate. The Mastcam instrument was developed and is operated by Malin Space Science Systems.
Source: NASA
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