APOD: 2026 October 3 – Selfie at Vera Rubin Ridge - NASA Science

APOD Science APOD APOD: 2026 October 3 –… Today’s APOD Archive Submissions Index Search Calendar RSS Education About Discuss   APOD Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. Selfie at Vera Rubin Ridge Explanation: On sol 1943 of its journey of exploration across the surface of Mars, the Curiosity Rover recorded this selfie at the south rim of Vera Rubin Ridge. Of course a sol is a Martian solar day , about 40 minutes longer than an Earth day. Curiosity’s sol 1943 corresponds to Earth date January 23, 2018. Also composed as an interactive 360 degree VR , the mosaicked panorama combines 61 exposures taken by the small car-sized rover’s Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI). Frames containing the imager’s arm have been edited out while the extended background used was taken by the rover’s Mastcam on sol 1903. At the top of the rover’s mast, sitting above the Mastcam, the laser-firing ChemCam housing blocks out the distant, 5 kilometer high peak of Mount Sharp. On Earth date August 26, 2026, Curiosity marked an total elevation gain of 1 kilometer in its trek from the floor of Gale Crater up the slope of Mount Sharp. APOD’s email for image submissions has changed. Please see: APOD Submissions . Tomorrow’s picture: Sunday’s Childe Date October 3, 2026 Credit: Image Credit: NASA , JPL-Caltech , MSSS – Panorama: Andrew Bodrov Authors & editors: Jerry Bonnell, Cecilia Chirenti, Robert Nemiroff, Keighley Rockcliffe A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC , NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. Random APOD Generator Yesterday’s Image APOD: 2026 October 2 – The Complete Sharpless Catalog: 313 Nebulas Tomorrow’s Image — Company newsroom — sourced from NASA. Matter furnished by the company. Not a Notice Nearby paid placement. This page reprints matter furnished by the company from its official newsroom. Notice Nearby did not write this release. Read the original: https://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october-3-selfie-at-vera-rubin-ridge