‘Crocodile Bridge’ on Mars: NASA’s Perseverance rover captures a mysterious ancient region on the Red Planet
NASA’s Perseverance has captured a sweeping new panorama of a rugged Martian region nicknamed “Crocodile Bridge”, revealing one of the oldest known landscapes on Mars in remarkable detail. The 360-degree mosaic, created using the rover’s Mastcam-Z camera system, combines 980 images captured across multiple Martian days, or sols. Located on the rim of Jezero Crater, the area contains ancient rocks believed to date back to the early formation of the solar system. Scientists say the terrain could preserve valuable clues about Mars’ early crust, atmosphere and the planet’s long-lost watery past.Inside the Crocodile Bridge region on Mars The newly released panorama was assembled using Perseverance’s Mastcam-Z camera system. According to NASA, 971 images were captured on 18 December 2025 during Sol 1,717 of the mission, while another nine images were taken on 25 January 2026 during Sol 1,754.The natural-colour panorama was processed to resemble how the human eye would see the Martian surface..
