Two-thirds of all missions sent to the Red Planet have failed, a good many lost on entry into the thin but unforgiving Martian atmosphere. Is this one better?
Assuming the robot lands safely, it will spend 98 (Earth) weeks scouring Martian soils and rocks for any signs that current or past environments on the planet could have supported microbial life.
Gale Crater was chosen as the landing site because satellite pictures had spied sediments in the depression that looked as though they were laid down in the presence of abundant water.
This mission goes one step further by trying to understand whether the environments in which the water persisted were habitable. Were there basic ingredients for life there? We're going to understand what the conditions were like when life was most likely in Mars' ancient history.
The rover is equipped with 10 advanced instruments. It also has a plutonium battery and so should have ample power to keep rolling for more than a decade.
(A) Curiosity will trundle around its landing site looking for interesting rock features to study. Its top speed is about 4cm/s
(B) This mission has 17 cameras. They will identify particular targets, and a laser will zap those rocks to probe their chemistry
(C) If the signal is significant, Curiosity will swing over instruments on its arm for close-up investigation. These include a microscope
(D) Samples drilled from rock, or scooped from the soil, can be delivered to two hi-tech analysis labs inside the rover body
(E) The results are sent to Earth through antennas on the rover deck. Return commands tell the rover where it should drive next
Will martian welcome this little one to tickle its funny surface and explore what mystery hidden within her playground? We will find out if it is in spring or winter now :-)))))))
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