Mount Sharp comes into sharp focus

The Curiosity rover has returned yet more images of Mount Sharp, and these are the best and highest-resolution ones yet. Taken by the 100-millimeter Mastcam camera, they show the layering of the mesas in the foothills in incredible detail. Also note the tiny speck in the centre of the white box in the middle of the image (magnified in the bottom corner of the image); that is a boulder about the same size as the rover, which is car-sized, giving a sense of scale. These mesas are huge, and they are dwarfed by the rest of the mountain itself! The images above and below have been enhanced to show the colours as they would appear if they were on Earth. Click on the images for larger versions.

The image below is an orbital view from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter showing the same region of foothills. This is where Curiosity will be driving later on; the mesas and canyons will be seen up close providing views never seen before by a rover on Mars. There is also a channel cutting through the middle portion of the image, which is thought to be an ancient riverbed. Other similar channels and their alluvial deposits can be seen elsewhere in this region. Click on the image for larger version and then click to zoom in.