Mars Rover Gets Up-Close and Personal With Meteorite

A stunning new photo yields an up-close view of a Mars meteorite discovered by NASA's Opportunity rover while exploring the Red Planet.

The iron meteorite, called Olean Ruiadh, is the sixth space rock Opportunity has found on Mars since it first started exploring the planet in 2004. The rover's cameras first picked up the meteorite Sept. 16.

Scientists christened the meteorite Olean Ruiadh in honor of the Gaelic name for an island off the coast of Ireland.

Opportunity took this new photo with its panoramic camera Sept. 24. The rover stuck with the rock for a few days, inspecting its texture and composition.

Opportunity departed the meteorite site Sept. 28, resuming its long trek toward Endeavour Crater, which is still about 6 miles (10 kilometers) away.

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