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Hubble's Look At Mars Shows Canyon Dust Storm, Cloudy Conditions For Pathfinder Landing


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Hubble telescope pictures of Mars, taken June 27, 1997 in preparation for the July 4 landing of the Pathfinder spacecraft, show a dust storm churning through the deep canyons of Valles Marineris, just 600 miles (1,000 kilometers) south of the Pathfinder spacecraft landing site.

Astronomers also report the presence of patchy cirrus clouds over the landing site and very thick clouds to the north. Because there are so many clouds (related to low temperatures in the atmosphere causing water vapor to freeze), the dust will probably stay confined to the canyons, they conclude. The green cross on the bottom picture identifies the Pathfinder landing site.

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      Managed for NASA by Caltech, NASA JPL built and manages operations of the Perseverance rover on behalf of the agency’s Science Mission Directorate as part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program portfolio.
      To learn more about Perseverance visit:
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      -end-
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      Last Updated Sep 10, 2025 EditorJessica TaveauLocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
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