Early in its objective, Curiositys clinical tools found chemical and mineral proof of past habitable environments on Mars. It continues to explore the rock record from a time when Mars could have been home to microbial life.
NASAs Curiosity Mars rover is a car-sized, mobile lab that was launched in November 2011 and successfully arrived on Mars in August 2012. It becomes part of NASAs Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission, designed to explore the Gale Crater on Mars and examine its environment, geology, and the capacity for past and present habitability. Equipped with modern clinical instruments, including sensing units, spectrometers, and electronic cameras, Curiosity has actually been conducting experiments and collecting information to help researchers understand the planets history and advancement. Its most significant discoveries include proof of ancient riverbeds and the existence of organic molecules, which suggest the possibility that Mars once harbored microbial life.
NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, California, leads the Curiosity objective. Interest took the selfie using a camera called the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), located on completion of its robotic arm. MAHLI was built by Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego.
NASAs Curiosity Mars rover took this close-up view of a rock nicknamed “Terra Firme” that looks like the open pages of a book, on April 15, 2023, the 3,800 th Martian day, or sol, of the objective, using the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on the end of its robotic arm. NASAs Curiosity Mars rover is a car-sized, mobile laboratory that was launched in November 2011 and effectively landed on Mars in August 2012. It is part of NASAs Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) objective, developed to explore the Gale Crater on Mars and examine its climate, geology, and the capacity for present and previous habitability.
NASAs Curiosity Mars rover took this close-up view of a rock nicknamed “Terra Firme” that appears like the open pages of a book, on April 15, 2023, the 3,800 th Martian day, or sol, of the objective, utilizing the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on the end of its robotic arm. The rock has to do with an inch throughout (2.5 centimeters). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
On its 3,800 th sol, NASAs Curiosity Mars rover photographed a book-like rock, “Terra Firme,” a result of water depositing harder minerals and wind erosion forming it over time.
NASAs Curiosity Mars rover took this close-up view of a rock nicknamed “Terra Firme” that appears like the open pages of a book, on April 15, 2023, the 3,800 th Martian day, or sol, of the mission, utilizing the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on the end of its robotic arm. The rock has to do with an inch across (2.5 centimeters).
Rocks with unusual shapes are common on Mars, and frequently were formed by water permeating through fractures in a rock in the ancient past, bringing more difficult minerals along with them. After eons of being sand-blasted by the wind, softer rock is carved away and the harder products are all thats left.