The Mars Express orbiter has sent a festive postcard back to Earth just in time for the holidays. On Thursday, the European Space Agency (ESA) released the spacecraft's view of a "winter wonderland" of ice inside Korolev crater.

The crater is located at the Martian north pole, so it may as well be the imaginary headquarters for the Martian Santa Claus. It may also be a not-so-imaginary home for humans one day, as igloo-like domes at the Martian north pole have been floated as one possibility for inhabiting the planet.

The image is especially timely because Mars Express will celebrate its 15th anniversary in Martian orbit on Christmas Day.

Named for the influential Soviet rocket engineer Sergey Korolev, the impact crater is 82 kilometers (50 miles) in diameter and contains a permanent ice field that stretches over a mile deep.