Stunning images from Mars have people across the internet wanting to strap on a space helmet and a pair of skates.
On Thursday, the European Space Agency released two gorgeous pictures of the Korolev crater, which the agency called an “especially well-preserved example of a martian crater” filled with ice.
The vivid pictures were created by combining five images taken by the ESA’s Mars Express spacecraft, which first entered orbit around Mars in 2003 and is still active today. The agency released the composite images this week in honor of the 15-year anniversary of the spacecraft swinging into orbit.
The crater is about 51 miles wide and, according to the ESA news release, is found “the northern lowlands of Mars, just south of a large patch of dune-filled terrain that encircles part of the planet’s northern polar cap.”
Lovely!
Of course, the images ― plus the fact that the crater is filled with ice “year-round” ― had many would-be space travelers itching to go skating on the red planet.
And if you’re still not convinced that gliding along a Martian crater would be incredible, take it from Olympic gold-medalist figure skater Scott Hamilton, who had some thoughts about how he could make use of outer space amenities.
