August 4, 1997
The cosmos has been expanding since the beginning of time, making room for galaxies, for stars, for planets — and ultimately, for you.
A Rusty Sunset on Mars
Birthday · August 4, 1997
A little universe, just for you
Your date.
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APOD published August 4, 1997. Full image credits are on the original APOD entry below. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
On Mars, sunsets can appear salmon pink. The unusual color is partly due to rust: oxidized iron from Martian dust circulating in the Martian atmosphere. Clouds appear in the morning and evening, but usually evaporate in the midday Sun. A day on Mars lasts 24.6 hours - very similar to Earth's, but a Martian year lasts almost twice as long as an Earth year. The above panorama by Mars Pathfinder, shown mirror-inverted, was released last Friday by the Imager team. Mars Pathfinder has now successfully completed all the goals of its planned mission. Nevertheless, the Sagan Memorial Station spent the weekend recharging its batteries, anticipating the possibility of still more productive weeks of exploration ahead.