14 DAY TRIAL // NASA's Opportunity rover left Earth in July 2003 and reached Mars a few months later, in January 2004. It has since covered a distance of about 26 miles (42 kilometers), all the while snapping images of Martian landscapes and analyzing the makeup of the planet's surface.
Just yesterday, the US space agency released a time-lapse video documenting the Opportunity's epic 11-year marathon across the Red Planet in 8 minutes flat.
The time-lapse comprises images obtained by the Mars explorer between January 2004 and April 2005, and shows the rover navigating rough terrains. The video even comes with its own soundtrack, i.e. vibration measurements taken by Opportunity itself while exploring the orb.
The loud noises included in the time-lapse indicate that the rover was trying to get across especially rough and tricky terrains, the quiet sounds indicate smooth landscapes.
Just to put things into perspective, the NASA scientists behind this time-lapse made sure to also include a map showing the places the Opportunity rover has visited since it landed on Mars in 2004.
Later this month, the robotic space explorer will be guided towards the Red Planet's Marathon Valley, where it will remain for several months waiting for another Martian winter to pass. While in this valley, the Opportunity rover will study outcrops that appear to contain clay minerals.
