Mars Express was launched by the European Space Agency (ESA) in 2003 on a mission to explore the surface of the Red Planet from both orbit and ground level. The ground-based inspection didn’t exactly go to plan, but that hasn’t stopped the probe from spending a decade painstakingly mapping the surface of Mars from every conceivable angle. Now the ESA has assembled a video based on the topographical data gathered by Mars Express, the effect of which is like flying over the sweeping plains of Mars.
The video is part of the celebrations around the probe’s 10-year anniversary, which started in June of this year. The craft didn’t actually make it to Mars until the end of 2003, so we’re also nearing the 10 year mark of its data collection activities. Mars Express has orbited the planet almost 12,500 times since its arrival and has mapped almost the entire surface of Mars.
