NASA's MRO took off from Earth on August 12, 2005. It reached Mars' orbit in March 2006. After nearly 20 years orbiting the Red Planet, the HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) instrument on the MRO has captured its 100,000th image. The image was captured on October 7.
The image shows a region on Mars called Syrtis Major. This region is about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of Jezero crater. Jezero Crater is a region that NASA's Perseverance has been exploring.
In this HiRISE image of Syrtis Major, we see mesas and dunes. These land features are common targets for the MRO's imaging instrument. Impact craters and ice deposits are among other HiRISE targets.
What remains unclear to scientists about this image of Syrtis Major is where the windblown sand that formed the dunes came from. Further studies will potentially reveal this.
Scientists, however, will continue to explore the Red Planet with the MRO's HiRISE. The instrument's imaging is improving our understanding of the changing Martian surface. This will help in picking potential landing sites and overall preparation for future human Mars missions.