Light-Toned Materials in Crater East of Aram Chaos
HiRISE PICTURE OF THE DAY: 23 JUNE 2026

East of Aram Chaos

Aram Chaos is of particular scientific interest because it is hypothesized that its chaotic terrain may be the source of water that contributed to the creation of nearby valleys such as Ares Vallis flowing toward Chryse Planitia. Our science goal with this observation is to see more details about these extensive light-toned deposits: could they be more sulfates or other hydrated materials?



100,000 Image of Mars!
On 7 October 2025, the HiRISE camera aboard MRO acquired an image of the Syrtis Major plains that marks over 100,000 images of Mars, which is a fabulous milestone!
HiRISE Image of Exocomet 3I/ATLAS
On 2 October 2025, MRO turned away from Mars to image 3I/ATLAS, only the third interstellar object ever observed passing through our solar system!

HiRISE Instrument News
HiRISE Instrument News
Since mid-2023, our RED4 CCD has operated only intermittently due to a hardware issue, creating gaps in the middle of some image products and reducing the color swath to 1 CCD width. We continue to command RED4 in all observations and it returns data approximately 50% of the time

Crater Ejecta in Northern Arabia Terra
The objective of this observation is to examine ejecta from a well-preserved crater. This is a good place to image because there is little dust cover, so many details are visible. Context Camera image data hints at many small channels that are more easily seen with a HiRISE image. Also, just beyond the ejecta are many round mounds that may have something to do with the hot ejecta melting ground ice.