Curiosity: Wheels on Mars
Explanation:
Could life ever have existed on Mars?
To help find out, humanity landed the
Curiosity rover
on Mars last August.
To make sure the car-sized explorer survived the interplanetary trip and
dramatic landing intact, the
above image
and others was taken peering at, under, and around Curiosity.
Pictured above
in this unusual vista are three of Curiosity's six wheels, each measuring about half
a meter across.
In recent months, Curiosity
has been exploring the surroundings of an area dubbed
Yellowknife Bay.
Analyses of data taken by
Curiosity's cameras and onboard laboratories has provided strong
new evidence
that
Mars
could once have supported life.
In the distance is part of the slope to the central peak inside
Gale Crater that Curiosity is scheduled to attempt to
climb --
Mt. Sharp.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
