NASA has released selfies sent by its Curiosity rover from Mars where it is drilling the planet's surface and collecting samples.

The space agency assembled the self-portrait from various images taken by the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) camera fitted on Curiosity's robotic arm. According to NASA, the images showing Curiosity were taken on Jan. 14, which marked the 868th day for the rover on the red planet.

The rover clicked some extra frames on Jan. 29 and again took new images of drill holes on Jan. 31. The composite image gives a sweeping view of Pahrump Hills on Mars, where the six-wheeled, nuclear-powered robot has been working for the last five months.

"The scene combines dozens of images taken during January 2015 by the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) camera at the end of the rover's robotic arm. The pale 'Pahrump Hills' outcrop surrounds the rover, and the upper portion of Mount Sharp is visible on the horizon. Darker ground at upper right and lower left holds ripples of wind-blown sand and dust," stated NASA.

The Curiosity rover was launched by NASA in November 2011 and made a perfectly-timed landing on Mars in August 2012. Since then, it has travelled a distance of over 10 kilometres on Mars and continues to transmit vital information about the planet's surface to the space agency. In December 2012, NASA extended the Curiosity mission indefinitely, which will allow the rover to continue sending many more selfies in the years ahead. Curiosity will keep travelling across Mars and will next halt at a site named Telegraph Peak, where the rover will drill for more samples. An analysis of the new samples collected from Mars by the Curiosity rover could provide new insights into the reasons that led to a change in the planet's environment.