“Anomaly” Appears In Multiple Mars Photographs Taken on January 10, 2022 (Sol 317) – Here’s a Breakdown

Case File Status: Likely Explainable, See Below

The following photograph was sent to The Black Vault by an anonymous submitter. They are not a “source” but rather wanted The Black Vault to look into the photograph, available publicly for download from NASA/JPL.

First, here is the photograph labeled NLF_0317_0695075595_130ECM_N0090000NCAM00900_02_095J:

Here is a close-up/zoomed/cropped version of the “anomaly” itself:

The official caption of the photo NLF_0317_0695075595_130ECM_N0090000NCAM00900_02_095J by NASA reads:

NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover acquired this image using its onboard Left Navigation Camera (Navcam). The camera is located high on the rover’s mast and aids in driving.

This image was acquired on Jan. 10, 2022 (Sol 317) at the local mean solar time of 10:47:11.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

The same “anomaly” was also captured in photograph NLF_0317_0695075874_065ECM_N0090000NCAM00901_02_095J approximately 4 1/2 minutes later:A close-up of that “anomaly” is at:

The official NASA/JPL caption reads:

NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover acquired this image using its onboard Left Navigation Camera (Navcam). The camera is located high on the rover’s mast and aids in driving.

This image was acquired on Jan. 10, 2022 (Sol 317) at the local mean solar time of 10:51:42.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

The Black Vault put both photographs, both from the LEFT navigation camera, on top of each other to create a composite.

It is clear that the angle is completely different from the camera itself, but by doing this, it revealed that the “anomaly” was to the pixel in the exact same spot:

The Black Vault attempted to find the corresponding RIGHT navigation camera, which is usually taken at the same time as the left.

The closest match, would be photograph NRF_0317_0695075595_130ECM_N0090000NCAM00900_02_095J:

As you can see, there appears to be no “anomaly”. The caption indicates that the photo was taken at the same time:

NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover acquired this image using its onboard Right Navigation Camera (Navcam). The camera is located high on the rover’s mast and aids in driving.

This image was acquired on Jan. 10, 2022 (Sol 317) at the local mean solar time of 10:47:11.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

The problem, however, is that numerous photographs listed on the NASA/JPL page for this day, displays the exact same time down to the second. Here is an array of both RIGHT and LEFT camera captures – all with the same time stamp:

So, the timestamp is problematic when matching photographs, but it appears by the composite, the most likely explanation would be a spec of dust temporarily on the lens. As the likelihood of an anomalous object flying in the air, taken in two different angles, would be in the EXACT same pixel-location.

The conclusion on this one, until further evidence is ever presented, would be dust that temporarily was on the lens of the left navigation camera.

To add one further note, it appears that the same effect also happened to the RIGHT navigation camera. This was discovered when sifting through the images to find corresponding evidence, should any exist.

While doing so, it was discovered that on two separate shots, both NRF_0317_0695075874_065ECM_N0090000NCAM00901_04_095J and NRF_0317_0695075595_130ECM_N0090000NCAM00900_04_095J:

… a spec of dust appears to have landed on the RIGHT navigation camera, as well.

When creating a composite, that “anomaly” as well, was in the exact same pixel-location:

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