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Space

Explore the Red Planet With a Mega-Map of Mars’ Topography

Jan Fröjdman spent months hand-stitching topographical visuals together to make a Google Maps-worthy video of the Red Planet's surface.

We want to reach out and touch the bumps, cracks, and crags of Mars' surface that Finnish artist Jan Fröjdman weaves into a four-minute short called, A FICTIVE FLIGHT ABOVE REAL MARS. Fröjdman, also an R&D engineer and certified hot air balloonist, spent three months arranging data from 33,000 reference points on stereoscopic 3D images taken by the HiRISE camera orbiting Mars. He edited the results into a four-minute video that feels like scrolling Google Maps on the Red Planet.

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"It has really been time-consuming making these panning clips," Fröjdman writes on the project description. He wants to make it clear that these are a 3D representation based on data, not literal photographs: "This film is not scientific," he says. "As a space enthusiast I have just tried to visualize the planet my way."

Watch the full film below:

Keep up with Jan Fröjdman's work on his website.

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