Image of the Day: Front View of Mars Rover Curiosity
July 28, 2012
The Mars Science Laboratory mission is sending Curiosity, the most technologically advanced rover ever built, to Mars to determine whether the planet ever was, or is, habitable to microbial life. The rover, which is about the size of a MINI Cooper, is equipped with 17 cameras and a robotic arm containing a suite of specialized laboratory-like tools and instruments.
Curiosity is en route to Mars and is scheduled to land in Gale Crater in August 2012, when it must perform a never-before-attemped series of landing maneuvers. The specialized landing sequence, which employs a giant parachute, a jet-controlled descent vehicle and a bungee-like apparatus called a “sky crane,” was devised because tested landing techniques used during previous rover missions could not safely accommodate the much larger and heavier rover.
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