A rover on Mars does more than examine rocks and soil. It can also turn its cameras towards the sky. In an October 19 update, NASA shared news of Curiosity's cloud observations. The rover recorded moving clouds on October 7, before sunset. This work took place in Gale Crater, just south of the planet's equator.
Many Martian clouds are very thin and difficult to see. Around sunset, high clouds can still catch sunlight while the ground becomes darker. This makes some clouds easier to observe. Mars had recently started a new year in the calendar used by scientists. The season was autumn in the southern half of the planet. These sky observations add another view of the rover's changing surroundings.