Mars, August 14, 2008—Mars's ubiquitous red dust appears in an entirely new light in this atomic force microscope image captured by NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander.

A single particle of Martian dust in the upper left corner—about one millionth of a meter across—appears at greater magnification than any other object ever seen on another world.

The microscope renders particles in 3-D by holding them in pits (visible) and scanning the particles with a sharp-tipped spring. (More photos: "Phoenix Lander's Search for Mars Water.")

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