Over the past few days, NASA’s Curiosity rover has been making a steady climb towards a strange Martian ridge that’s captivated scientists since before the mission even started. Known as Vera Ridge after the pioneering astrophysicist Vera Rubin, the durable outcrop could shed new light on the environment and potential…
Last month, NASA’s Curiosity rover captured some of the most remarkable images of Martian clouds we’ve ever seen. Now rare, these Earth-like cirrus clouds are a glimpse into the Red Planet’s distant past.
See that faint, blue dot in the middle of this NASA image? That’s the Curiosity rover making its way up the rocky slopes of Mount Sharp. The robotic lander, now approaching its fifth year of operation, has never looked so lonely.
A routine check performed by NASA has uncovered two tears on the treads of the Mars Curiosity Rover’s left middle wheel. The damage isn’t unexpected, nor is it catastrophic, but it’s a reminder that this intrepid little explorer won’t last forever.
NASA is working to resolve an increasingly frustrating problem with the Curiosity Rover’s drill, which has stalled, leaving the Martian explorer out of action on the slopes of Mount Sharp for more than two weeks.
NASA’s Curiosity rover is currently climbing the slopes of Mount Sharp as it ventures to its next exploration site. Earlier this week, the rover stumbled upon a tiny metallic meteorite, which features some rather peculiar features.
NASA’s Curiosity rover has completed its survey of “Murray Buttes,” and is now set to venture even higher along the slopes of Mount Sharp. The intrepid rover took the opportunity to snap a selfie as it proudly stood in front of some rather dramatic Martian features.
Citing films like Pan’s Labyrinth and District 9 as inspiration, screenwriter-turned-director Travis Beacham—best known as the writer behind Pacific Rim—just released the first teaser of his directorial debut, The Curiosity.
Admit it: In your heart, you’re a space robot, laughing at death on Mars, while you pop a wheelie over an underground water cavern. Now there’s a game that lets you take your true form.
NASA just announced that it’s given the Curiosity rover the power to fire its laser at targets of its choice. You fools, you’ve killed us all.
NASA is racing to finish a new Mars rover, and the mission just got a launch and land date. The new rover will leave Earth by August 2020, and in February of 2021, it will hit the surface of the Red Planet to search for signs of life.
Curiosity is finally back in action, after it threw itself into a mysterious partial shutdown last week, briefly falling out of communication with Earth. Now, NASA has figured out the cause—and the culprit is also one of Curiosity’s best features.
The Curiosity rover was sent up to Mars with the important job of hunting for microbes on the red planet’s surface. Now, that job is done, and Curiosity is getting a new mission—and that mission is all about the past, and future, of life on Mars.
Mars InSight lander was set to blast its way towards the red planet just three short months from now. Today, NASA announced that leaks that had sprung up in the lander wouldn’t be fixed in time. The next window to send it back won’t be for two years—and whether it will make it then isn’t yet certain.
NASA’s Curiosity rover has boldly gone where no robotic probe has gone before: a Martian sand dune.
A mix of rock and sand greeted the Curiosity Rover as it approaches the Bagnold Dune field, the dunes slowly encroaching on weathered outcrops. This is our first visit to active dunes anywhere but on Earth.
Hey, look at that! The Curiosity rover drilled a 9th hole in Mars, just 18 sols after the last hole. That’s a new record for speed-drilling on the red planet! Or, as the powdered rock dust so clearly shows, the red planet with a grey center.
Look at Curiosity. Now, look at Curiosity’s shadow. Notice anything?
NASA’s Curiosity Rover is currently drilling holes on the lower slopes of Mount Sharp in a region called the Stimson Unit. It recently took a break from its duties to take some long-range photos of a hilly region that the rover will explore in the coming months and years.
Every time the Curiosity Rover drills into Mars, it creates a beautiful dime-sized hole and a pile of powdered rock just waiting for analysis. Here’s why these drill holes are so important—and all the technology that makes them happen.
