A new ultra high-definition video of NASA’s Mars Curiosity Rover’s descent to the surface to the Red Planet can now be seen thanks to the work of independent video producer Bard Canning.
The video, which uses original imagery released by NASA, took Canning four weeks to make and depicts the descent from the perspective of the rover itself.
According to TPM, the original footage, made of 297 frames, shows the rover’s final two-and-a-half minutes plunge including a brusque 14,000 mph to zero slowdown.
During those four weeks, Canning used the video processing technique called motion-flow interpolation to make the video more fluid at 30 frames-per-second (fps).
Canning acknowledged that the process of interpolation meant creating some inaccuracies within the footage. In a Reddit thread, the producer wrote, “It should definitely be noted that by its very nature interpolation creates inaccuracies. The original was 4fps, so converting to 30fps at the same speed means that you’re essentially inventing 87% of the footage.”
According to Canning, he also color-corrected and detail-enhanced the footage. The producer re-rendered the video at “enterprise-quality 1080p, 50,000 kbps (instead of the usual ~1000kbps).”
The resulting video was, according to Canning, “a labor of love.” He added, “It took 29 days from start to finish, working full-time on it for the last week. This was the most laborious media project that I’ve ever done. But I don’t regret a minute of it.”
WATCH ‘MARS CURIOSITY DESCENT- ULTRA HD 30FPS SMOOTH-MOTION’
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