This view from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) in NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows finely layered rocks within the "Murray Buttes" region on lower Mount Sharp. NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

NASA recently released some amazing images of cliff formations on Mars that were taken September 8 by the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on the Curiosity rover. The photos of the Murray Buttes region near the bottom of Mount Sharp "arguably rival photos taken in U.S. National Parks," according to a NASA press release. We're inclined to agree.

"Curiosity's science team has been just thrilled to go on this road trip through a bit of the American desert Southwest on Mars," said Curiosity Project Scientist Ashwin Vasavada.

This view from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) in NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a hillside outcrop with layered rocks within the "Murray Buttes" region on lower Mount Sharp. NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

The images show buttes and mesas of sandstone that have eroded into striking layered cliffs at the foot of the 18,000-foot-tall Mount Sharp. Just like sedimentary rock formations on the Earth, the layers of material can help planetary geologists read the history of that region of the planet, creating a detailed timeline of how the rock outcrops formed as sand dunes, were submerged underground, hardened, tilted, eroded, uplifted, and eroded some more.

"Studying these buttes up close has given us a better understanding of ancient sand dunes that formed and were buried, chemically changed by groundwater, exhumed and eroded to form the landscape that we see today," Vasavada said.

This view from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) in NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows an outcrop with finely layered rocks within the "Murray Buttes" region on lower Mount Sharp. NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Curiosity has been in the Murray Buttes region for about a month, and the car-sized rover stopped to snap these photos on its way out of the area. Currently the rover is conducting its latest drilling operation near a butte on the perimeter of the region, after which it will continue south and up the slope of Mount Sharp.

NASA is planning another large panoramic image of Mars using the new photos of the spectacular formations in Murray Butte, which should be released in the coming weeks. Keep on keepin' on, Curiosity.

This view from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) in NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows a sloping hillside within the "Murray Buttes" region on lower Mount Sharp. The rim of Gale Crater, where the rover has been active since landing in 2012, is visible in the dista NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

This view from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) in NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows sloping buttes and layered outcrops within the "Murray Buttes" region on lower Mount Sharp. NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io