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Mars Express 3D Image Released

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the whole-lotta-mars-going-on dept.

zoney_ie writes "As reported in BBC News Online, ESA (European Space Agency) have released an image of the surface of Mars, captured in 3D and full colour. Europe's Mars Express orbiter has been taking pictures of the Martian surface at down to 10m resolution. The mission will result in Mars being more carefully mapped than Earth has been to date! Full size image available on ESA's Mars Express Website."

1 of 213 comments (clear)

  1. Release unhindered data?R by x4A6D74 · · Score: 2, Troll

    Right, so that image they put up is nifty and shows that they have been able to extrapolate altitude from the stereo aspect of the cam.

    But for those of us who like to do our own 3D modeling, when will they release the whole-planet texture and heightmaps (a la NASA's Blue Planet, as mentioned by another poster)? I want to be able to load that stuff up and then make my own animations of probes/ships/etc., complete with landing and interacting with the environment.

    Besides, without that data, how can I start to plan how to terraform the planet? And how can I decide the optimum location for my evil lair?