Pretend you are a planetary geologist and the image above appears in front of you. Where in the solar system is this? Perhaps you should start with the simplest possibility. Is it Earth? What clues would you look for to decide?

You may have figured out that this is an impact crater on a lifeless red planet. This panorama of the Endurance Crater on Mars was created from 258 individual images taken by the Mars Exploration Rover, Opportunity. The vertical cliffs will allow planetary geologists to study the rocks exposed there for clues to the geology and geologic history of the planet.

^{Panorama: Courtesy of NASA/JPL/Cornell, Public Domain.}

^{Dunes: Phil Armitage, may be used for any purpose. Crater: Courtesy of National Park Service, Public Domain.}

^{Rocks: Miles Orchinik/CK-12, CC BY-NC 3.0.}