Wrapped in a cloud of dust

Wrapped in a cloud of dust
Wrapped in a cloud of dust A small local storm that popped up in the northern hemisphere of Mars on May 30, 2018 grew into a massive regional dust storm in days. By mid-June, it ballooned large enough to encircle the planet, shrouding it in a thick cloud of dust. The image above, taken by the MARCI — the Mars Color Imager — onboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) and processed by Bruce Cantor at Malin Space Science Systems (MSSS), shows the latest global view of Mars on July 1, 2018. The small dot near the middle is where Opportunity is hunkered down waiting out the Planet-Encircling Dust Event (PEDE). NASA / JPL-Caltech / MSSS