Perseverance posts sixth Mars selfie

NASA released new images from its Perseverance rover on May 12 showing the mission’s sixth selfie from Mars, a self-portrait taken during the rover’s farthest push west beyond Jezero Crater. The composite was captured on March 11, 2026 — the mission’s 1,797th Martian day, or sol — near a rocky outcrop NASA identifies as “Arathusa,” according to NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The image places the rover in a landscape the mission team says may include rocks older than Jezero Crater itself. The release also included an animated version in which the rover appears to look down at the outcrop and then toward the camera. ### Why is NASA calling this the rover’s sixth selfie? NASA said the March 11 image is Perseverance’s sixth selfie since the rover landed on Mars in February 2021. The previous selfie, described by JPL in May 2025, was the fifth and was taken at the 1,500-sol mark near Witch Hazel Hill on Jezero’s rim. (nasa.gov) The March 11 self-portrait was built from 61 individual images, while the 2025 selfie used 59. NASA said the newer image was taken during the rover’s deepest push west beyond the crater, making it the mission’s westernmost selfie to date. ### Where exactly was Perseverance when it took the picture? (nasa.gov) NASA said the rover took the selfie at a location the science team calls “Lac de Charmes,” with the “Arathusa” outcrop in the foreground and the western rim of Jezero Crater visible behind it. JPL described the area as part of the rover’s fifth science campaign, the Northern Rim Campaign. (nasa.gov) Katie Stack Morgan, Perseverance project scientist at JPL in Southern California, said the team took the image in the “Wild West” beyond Jezero’s rim, “the farthest west we have been since we landed at Jezero a little over five years ago.” She said the rover had just abraded and analyzed the Arathusa outcrop from a position that gave the team a view of both the Jezero rim and terrain outside the crater. (nasa.gov) ### What does the outcrop in front of the rover tell scientists? NASA said Perseverance had just made a circular abrasion patch on Arathusa before the selfie was assembled. Abrading removes part of a rock’s outer surface so the science team can inspect material inside it. JPL said that work allowed the team to determine Arathusa is composed of igneous minerals that likely predate the formation of Jezero Crater. (nasa.gov) NASA described the broader Lac de Charmes region as some of the most scientifically compelling terrain the rover has visited. ### How was the selfie made without showing the camera arm? (nasa.gov) NASA said the image was assembled from pictures taken by the WATSON camera mounted on the end of Perseverance’s robotic arm. WATSON is part of the SHERLOC instrument, and NASA said the stitched image was created after the frames were transmitted back to Earth. JPL said the rover made 62 precision movements over about one hour to gather the frames needed for the final composite. (nasa.gov) Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego built WATSON and operates it jointly with JPL, according to NASA. ### What else did NASA release with the selfie? NASA said the selfie was published alongside a Mastcam-Z panorama of an area nicknamed “Arbot,” captured on April 5, 2026, or sol 1,882. (science.nasa.gov) The panorama was made from 46 images and shows a broad geological view of the terrain in Lac de Charmes. The image package also included a version of the selfie in which the rover appears to look directly at the camera, plus an animation combining the two views. (nasa.gov) NASA posted the files through its main mission page and Photojournal entry dated May 12. ### What comes next for Perseverance in this part of Mars? Perseverance is operating in its Northern Rim Campaign, NASA said, as it surveys terrain west of Jezero Crater. (nasa.gov) The mission pages NASA updated on May 12 link the new selfie, the Arbot panorama and additional mission materials for the rover’s ongoing work in that region. (science.nasa.gov)