The photographer of the following Mars images is Jean-Luc Dauvergne. Jean-Luc has really made most of the 2010 Mars approach with the telescope on the top of Pic du Midi, southern France, and The Imaging Source astronomy camera. This is also the first time we received images taken with GigE astronomy camera.

Here is the picture in color. It was also featured as NASA’s Astronomy Picture Of the Day on Feb.05:

Mars Approach 2010 ( Click to Zoom in)

He also sent us a picture in which he pinpointed several terrestrial features of Mars. You guys all understand them though they are in French.

Mars (Click to Zoom in)

Jean-Luc told us

took the picture on the T1M of Pic du Midi. It is an infrared image (742nm). The sky was far from perfectly stable.

Merci Jean-Luc!