It took 11 years for the Mars Opportunity Rover to create this time-lapse video

BY NATALIE KRAWCZYK

On July 7, 2003 NASA launched the Mars Opportunity rover as part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover program. Since it touched down in 2004, Opportunity has spent the last 11 years traveling over the surface of Mars.

In April 2015, Opportunity completed its marathon length (26.2 miles) journey to the Endeavour Crater.

NASAJetPropulsionLab/YouTube

The eight minute video released by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, stitches together pictures Opportunity took using its hazard-avoidance cameras as it traveled from crater to crater.

The video spans from January 2004 to April 2015.

NASAJetPropulsionLab/YouTube

The time-lapse shows several instances where the rover got stuck on the Martian surface.

NASAJetPropulsionLab/YouTube

The louder audio in the time-lapse represents the rough terrain while the softer sounds are when the Mars Opportunity rover traveled over a smooth part of the Martian surface.

Check out the view from Opportunity from the past 11 years

Screengrab via NASAJetPropulsionLab/YouTube