Here's the next camera we're sending to Mars

The next photos we get of the surface of Mars will be taken by this camera, NASA's most advanced.

It's the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), a device capable of capturing images with a resolution of 15.4 microns per pixel. That's about twice as high as the resolution on Mars Rovers Spirit and Opportunity. The device will fly on NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission in late 2011, attached to Mars Rover Curiosity's articulated arm.

Below, you can see a sample image taken by the camera in a lab. Looks pretty good! Hopefully it looks just as good when photographing aliens.