'Tadpole' on Mars? Nasa captures weird Martian crater in stunning new image

Nasa has shared a new image from Mars, showcasing a "tadpole" on the Red Planet.

Every now and then, the space agency employs its Curiosity rover and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) to capture some amazing features of the Red Planet.

This usually includes things of scientific importance or features that have not been spotted before such as the mysterious "stick-like figures" that led many to think that aliens once thrived on Mars.

But this time, Nasa decided to have some fun by showcasing a "tadpole". No, not a real larval-stage amphibian, but an unusual impact crater which would have been filled with water several million years ago.

The massive site is connected to a snake-like valley carved by once-flowing water on the planet. The whole thing, with the tail-like valley at the back, looks very much similar to a tadpole, according to Nasa.

"It is often difficult to differentiate between inlet and outlet channels, but water always flows downhill," Nasa said, describing the image.

"In this particular case, we can infer that water is flowing outward because we have the necessary terrain-height information." The image was taken by MRO's HiRise camera and shared on Wednesday, 7 February, 2018.

Just a few days back, the agency shared another image from Mars, a breathtaking panoramic shot that looked at Curiosity rover's entire journey since it landed on the planet in 2012. The image even highlighted several features of the impact crater the rover has been exploring till today.