Catching up with NASA rovers Curiosity and Opportunity and their search for water on Mars

Nick Tann 0 Comment NASA ChemCam, Curiosity, Gale Crater, HiRISE, laser, Mars, Mars Descent Imager, Mastcam, Microscopic Imager, Mount Sharp, NASA, Opportunity, rock, space, water

31 photos

After news earlier this week of the Curiosity rover petting and naming its new pet rock, Jake Matijevic, NASA released images today indicating that long ago, water probably flowed on the Martian surface.

Other notable images recently sent back from Mars include one from Curiosity’s older, but smaller rover sibling, Opportunity, that photographed small spherical objects, nicknamed “blueberries,” with it’s Microscopic Imager providing important evidence about long-ago wet environmental conditions.

Aug 23, 2012

Curiosity rover makes tracks on Mars in successful test drive

The Baltimore Sun 4 Comments NASA ChemCam, Curiosity, Gale Crater, HiRISE, laser, Mars, Mars Descent Imager, Mount Sharp, NASA, rock, space

66 photos

Since NASA’s Curiosity landed on Mars on August 5, 2012, public excitement and speculation about what the rover will encounter continues to mount. To feed the appetite of the masses, we’ll continue to update our Curiosity gallery with NASA’s latest photos of the red planet, including panorama, composite and computer-generated images.

The next phase of the $2.5 billion mission, and by far the most daunting for Curiosity, will be reaching Mount Sharp. At a height of 3.4 miles, the highest peak of Mount Sharp is taller than Mt. Whitney in California. On its way, the rover will encounter dark dunes, degraded impact craters and other geologic features on the Martian surface of the planet. For updates follow @MarsCuriosity on Twitter.
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