Question on image posted from Mars rover

So I know these pictures are composites of multiple shots...but why is there repetitive features on the surface yet not on the rover arm itself.

Look at the link below and look inside the "crook" of the arm...I first saw the two rocks on the surface that are clearly identical...but then noticed more features that are repeated yet don't see this in the arm of the rover. So, how is only the info behind the arm affected??

Hopefully I am making sense.

You have a good eye.
I wonder what was there that they didn't want anyone to see.

I am not the biggest conspiracy guy on these things, but if the image overlays are off a bit causing some simple overlap errors, wouldn't the arm also show that??

reply to post by Laserjock


I see that. It looks like stitching errors indeed. Navcam images are tricky to stitch together. The "repeating" is right when one image ends and another begins.

- Someone who stitches Mars images.

Yeah...odd that the rover arm is flawless...image behind it...not so much.

Originally posted by Laserjock
I am not the biggest conspiracy guy on these things, but if the image overlays are off a bit causing some simple overlap errors, wouldn't the arm also show that??

edit on 23-3-2013 by Laserjock because: (no reason given)

Not necessarily. These artifacts happen all the time for me - especially when I work with NavCam images. That's why I try NOT to stitch NavCam images - because I suck at it!

en.wikipedia.org...

I rarely get those artifacts when I stitch together color MastCam images. Go figure...

Here you go:

www.unmannedspaceflight.com...

That's Sol 223 - Taken with the Navcam. I didn't do this one because I wouldn't be able to get it any better. At the top, where the images meet, you can see similar artifacts.

Edit to add: That's the same thing from the OP, just more complete and not colorized with false color. I don't see that artifact where the arm is in this one.

Some people are better at stitching than others. That's all.

Good Catch! s&f

In all seriousness, part of me thinks that the Curiosity Rover is cruising somewhere in the Mohave, Nevada or Utah desert. Light filters would color the panoramic views to make it look different than earth. This would account in many of the 'anomalies' seen such as lizards, knives, skeletons, and structures.

Maybe it really is a simple 'stitching error' as others here have said. Maybe not.

Originally posted by Laserjock
So I know these pictures are composites of multiple shots...but why is there repetitive features on the surface yet not on the rover arm itself.

Well if you look at the original source images (link). There is only one photo that contains the arm itself, thus you won't see any repetitive features. While the some of the rocks behind it are in two or more images.

My stitching software (link) won't even find any image matches. There isn't a whole lot of overlap between the images themselves. Plus since the Navcams have a wide FOV, it tends to create more lens distortion which probably makes it more difficult for the software to match up features between the images. Perhaps there are some settings I should adjust or there could be better software out there. It really depends on the skill and knowledge of the user.

If you look at the image impaired linked to. You can see that person did a much better job with no noticeable repetition as far as I can tell.

reply to post by jra


Good luck telling how it all works.

According to some, we're "disinfo agents" for going against the grain.

and this is why 1 comes to ATS...



thanks OP its CLEARLY just ROCKS

understood there's reasons why? thanks
OP for the LIGHT

NAMASTE*******

It's frightening when people will believe what they want to believe even though there is an explanation as to what's going on.

I remember when ATS was about denying ignorance. Nowadays, people here seem to embrace it here.

I want the old ATS back.

I think the large field of view of the Navcams (45 degrees) is to blame. Since the robotic arm is much closer to the camera than the terrain, there are some parallax issues. There's also the possiblity that the arm moved slightly between the time images were taken.

Here's my assemblage of the 2 frames with the arm, using Microsoft ICE.


As you can see, the terrain is not repeated, but the arm is all broken.

Compare this to the individual images themselves:
mars.jpl.nasa.gov...
mars.jpl.nasa.gov...

So, it's not something to cry "what are they hiding?" about. Download a panorama-stitching software, go to mars.jpl.nasa.gov... for individual images, and get stitchin'

reply to post by ArMaP


Oooh - Someone's using Hugin! I thought it wasn't your thing? How is it? Making progress? I'm not.

I see Hugin and I run the other way. It's way too complicated for me, and I can never get it to work out. PTGui is still my best friend.

Originally posted by wildespace So, it's not something to cry "what are they hiding?" about. Download a panorama-stitching software, go to mars.jpl.nasa.gov... for individual images, and get stitchin'

Very wise words. Anyone can do this.

Before folks cry conspiracy, perhaps they should cover the basics first...

Originally posted by impaired
Oooh - Someone's using Hugin! I thought it wasn't your thing? How is it? Making progress? I'm not.

It was the first time I could make a panorama with Hugin, the first time I tried it was in July or August last year.

Better late than never, I guess.

Originally posted by occrest
Maybe it really is a simple 'stitching error' as others here have said. Maybe not.

They are stitching errors. This is a fact.